


The Mark of Salem

by Smoky_Requiem



Series: RWBY: Stories of Passion [1]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Alternate Universe - Harem, Alternate Universe - Stripper/Exotic Dancer, Bathroom Sex, Blow Jobs, Bondage, Consensual Possession, Creampie, Cunnilingus, Deepthroating, Dungeon, F/F, Foursome - F/F/F/F, Full Nelson, Futanari, Gentle Dom, Handcuffs, Happy Sex, Japanese Rope Bondage, Large Cock, Leather Kink, Love Hotels, MILFs, Magic Cock, Masturbation in Shower, Mating Press, Multiple Sex Positions, Oral Sex, Orgy, Other, Paddling, Platonic BDSM, Porn With Plot, Ritual Sex, Rope Bondage, Rough Sex, Semi-Public Sex, Sex Club, Sex Magic, Sex Toys, Spanking, Strap-Ons, Strippers & Strip Clubs, Stripping, Threesome - F/F/F, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex, Vibrators, Whipping, Womb Tattoos
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 10:20:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 53,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27469396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Smoky_Requiem/pseuds/Smoky_Requiem
Summary: Long ago, humanity was strong and mystic. Now, it has been reduced to mere lunacy. War. Greed. Destruction. Discrimination. All the while, it struggles to survive against beasts of shadows as well as themselves. This sorry state of humanity is the fault of one woman's selfish love. Now, the time has come for this woman to bring about the reunion of humanity within the one trait it denies...Bring the survivors to the castle. One will join us, I'm sure of it.
Relationships: Cinder Fall/Emerald Sustrai, Cinder Fall/Pyrrha Nikos, Cinder Fall/Salem, Jaune Arc/Pyrrha Nikos, Lie Ren/Nora Valkyrie, Neopolitan & Roman Torchwick, Raven Branwen/Taiyang Xiao Long, Summer Rose/Salem (RWBY), Summer Rose/Taiyang Xiao Long, Tyrian Callows/Cinder Fall/Hazel Rainart/Arthur Watts
Series: RWBY: Stories of Passion [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2006983
Comments: 8
Kudos: 35





	1. Ashes

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there! I'm a new author to this site, and this is my first work. If you see another story similar to this one that's only one chapter, that's because it's my first draft that I asked someone else to publish for me. So don't worry, no one's stealing anyone's work. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this story!

The waves roll and crash against the side of the lone ship. The night sky is full of stars that peer down upon the vessel, like eyes of judgement cast down from the heavens. Bits and pieces of the ship’s crew run around, making sure the tides and sky don’t break the ship apart during their sleep. Amidst the busybodies, a single woman stands alone on the bow; while the ship she stands upon is adrift in sea, but her mind is currently adrift in thought. The sea is so alien to her; she has never seen so much water in one place. The only time she’s seen more water than what could fit in a bucket was on that fateful day back into her childhood…

Born into a family who knew misfortune like an old friend, her days were full of torment. Her mother had died giving birth to her, and they lived in a small nomad village outside of Vale. When it wasn’t her drunkard of a father instilling a feeling of powerlessness into her with only a single strike, it was the demands of her overbearing sisters, using their age like a whip to crack upon her back and make her toil at the work they bothered not to do. Despite the torture, the girl never fought back; any chance she had to try and voice her pain, it was quickly silenced by an overbearing reality check she hardly understood. All she knew was that she was making their lives worse by existing and she owed them for her very life. As such, she lived quietly and obediently, accepting her fate as a waste of space. Misfortune would rear its ugly head one day during a storm, however, when she was sent in the cold, biting rain to retrieve a few vials of Fire Dust to replenish what little they had to spare. By the time she came back, she found her home in flames. Lighting had taken her family away, leaving only a struggling flame that was desperate to survive in spite of the rain. She stood there, among the rain and ashes, feeling any sense of security leave her. Sure, the people she was indebted to are dead, but now she had no home and no one to care for her. She was not only worthless, but alone, cementing her feelings of despair and self-deprecation.

From there, she lived as an orphan, shambling on the streets, until a Huntress caught her eye. This huntress took her in, and for a while, she lived a much better life than before. As the years went on, their care for the child gradually dwindled, and she was nothing more than an accessory on the walls to them.She was usd to being ignored, but a part of her felt that the lack of abuse was worse than her previous home life. For all of the pain she had to endure, to be alone with no work or no pain to distract her from her thoughts was haunting. As for the Huntress, their work was all that mattered; they wanted to leave this Nomad village behind and seek glory in the kingdoms. Their search led her to a supposed island of Grimm that no one has ever returned from; the few rumors around it revolved around a single boat entering its coast and never coming back years ago. With this knowledge, they packed up as much ammunition as they could and brought their adopted child with him to chronicle their legend. From the village to the docks, they gathered a ragtag crew and set sail.

With her thoughts returning to the present, the woman lets a sign escape her lips. The burdens of her past were chained to her each day, and yet the moments when she is alone do not save her from them. All she can do is stare at the rolling waves reflecting the starlight as the boat nears its destination. However, as she stares deeper, she catches a glimpse of a shadow lurking under them. Thinking that perhaps she’s merely imagining things, she steps away from the railing to head to the cabins. The next thing the woman sees is the sky before the sudden shaking of the boat sends her head slamming straight into the railing.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the veil of unconsciousness lifts from the woman’s mind, her sight is greeted with something she does not expect; a strange chandelier made of purple and black glass hanging from the maroon ceiling above. As her senses slowly return to her, she realizes her head had gone through a rapid recovery while she was out cold. She feels around herself to find some solid ground to sit up off of, only to feel the plush cushion of a bed instead. Slowly sitting up, she puts the pieces of her surroundings together in her mind, realizing she is now in a bedroom. A luxurious bedroom at that. Thinking back to where she was before she blacked out, she reasons that someone must’ve found her and taken her to safety; maybe the Huntress was responsible for this. As she looks around the room, she spots an open doorway just across from the left side of the bed. Her thoughts are quickly interrupted by the sound of footsteps clacking across the hallway outside, drawing closer to the doorway. Not knowing who it could be, the woman tries to find something she might need to defend herself, but all she can find are pillows. However, the person who enters is far from threatening in her eyes.

Their figure is tall, yet thin. Their hair is pulled back into a dark braid that lays daintily across their shoulder. They are dressed in a white coat with contrasting black leather pants underneath. Their eyes match the woman’s own in the same striking amber color, only a bit darker in shading. The most odd addition to this new face is the long, black tail that curls up just shy of hitting the floor, adorned with a sinister looking tip. Despite this scorpion tail, the new figure appears relieved to see the woman, stepping closer to the bedside as she holds a tray of food and water.

“Oh, thank goodness you’re awake!”, the scorpion-Faunus says. “When we found you washed up along the shore, I was worried you might have been too far gone!” The woman looks confused as she is handed the tray, deciding to leave it on her lap for now. The faunus continues; “I’m sure you must be wondering where you are. I’ll take you on a tour once you’ve finished eating. For now, allow me to introduce myself. I am Tyriana.” The Faunus makes a small bow before the woman, smiling widely. “And what, pray tell, is your name?” The woman looks to the tray at her lap, not much for eye contact. She struggles for a moment to find her voice before responding.

“...Ella. Ella Fall.”

Tyriana perks up once Ella finds her voice. She bows once more before speaking. “The pleasure is all mine, Miss Fall! Now, don’t worry about your crew and captain; they are also recovering in the castle. Once you’ve finished eating, we shall begin the tour!”

After the meal, Ella follows Tyriana through the sprawling mass of the castle. The interior looks like it was ripped straight from a children’s fairytale, only with an abundance of dark red and purple. Many rooms they pass by are wide and full of strange artwork, but some are closed behind locked doors, and no matter how hard Ella tries, she can’t seem to get a straight answer from Tyriana. “Oh, it’s a room with a special purpose,” and “In time, you might learn” aware common answers during the tour. At the last leg of the tour, they walk up to a large set of doors. Upon pushing them open, Tyriana leads Ella inside a massive room. Tall, decorated windows illuminate the large room through auburn colored sunlight, showing the strange land outside. Glancing out of one of these windows, Ella gasps in horror as she sees the dark pools dotted along the ground giving birth to the beasts of Remnant's bane; the creatures of Grimm. Tyriana seems unfazed by both the hellscape outside and Ella’s fear, much to the added shock of Ella. There is no doubt in her mind that all the rumors surrounding the island she was brought along to find were true. Yet, there was a castle with people and food. How could people survive in this horrific place? As the two walk past the large table in the center of the room, they stand before another woman who had been waiting for them.

Ella can’t believe the appearance of this woman: Eyes blacker than the pools outside with glowing red orbs as pupils, skin as white as bone with black veins contrasting against it, hair that hung as a fringe over the left side of her face, a dress that cloaked her in black and red, a small window that shows a generous amount of cleavage, the rest of her hair tied up into a long braid decorated with purple and black glass, and a single black diamond in the center of her forehead. The woman smiles as Tyriana kneels before her while she sits atop her black throne. She speaks in a soothing voice, one that seems to purge all the fear in Ella’s heart and leave her with an eerie calm. 

“Rise, Tyriana. There is no need for such fanfare at this moment.”

As Tyriana rises, she speaks; “My apologies, your Grace. I cannot help myself; every time I see your beauty, it makes me crumble to my knees. Enough about me, however. I am happy to inform you that the shipwreck yielded survivors, much like the one behind me. The rest are currently still sleeping.”

The pale woman smiles warmly at this news, her eyes meeting Ella’s own. “Is that so? Wonderful! It is always a shame to see those who cannot survive the journey wash up. Although, I imagine you are not very pleased with where you are now, correct?” Ella jumps a bit in surprise. It’s as if the woman just read her mind! Was this some kind of intelligent Grimm creature the world had yet to be terrorized by? The woman then chuckles, once again bringing a strange calm over Ella. “I am afraid I am not entirely a Grimm, though I can command them. I do wish I could contain them all, but sadly, my grasp is only so strong. You needn’t worry, my dear. You are safe within these castle walls.”

As Ella struggles to find the words needed to explain her confusion, Tyriana takes charge of the conversation. “This is Ella Fall, my Queen. Ella, this is the Lord of the castle; A goddess among men, ruling with kindness and care. The unknown master of Grimm, the Immortal Queen, the Mistress of the Golden Age, the wonderful, the merciful, the beautiful Queen Salem!”

Salem visibly reddens in the cheeks as Tyriana introduces her, much to Ella’s surprise. “Tyri, Tyri, please! Our new friend is still trying to grasp this situation; your fanfare might come off and intimidating rather than helpful.”

Tyriana visibly shrinks at this, bowing her head quickly. “Y-You are right, my Queen. Forgive me.”

Salem stands from her throne, patting the Faunus’ lowered head. “Worry not, my dear. You can make it up to me later.”,she says with an odd tone to her voice. Tyriana finds it difficult to suppress her giddy laughter behind her hand, her tail curling up in excitement at the implication.

Ella, however, is still extremely clueless. It feels as if she is in the lair of an evil being, but these two do not act evil at all. In fact, they seem like the most pleasant people she’s ever met, which is a little off putting considering the location. She has no idea how or why she can trust them, but she oddly feels more at ease with them than both her family and the Huntress. This all feels like some kind of insane dream, but she musters enough will to try and ask for clarity, or at least a reality check. “Um...If I may…why am I here…? What do you want from me and the people I came with..?”

She expects an ice cold reception considering Salem’s appearance, but is instead greeted by a warm smile. “Why, we simply wish to let you and your friends recover in the safety of our castle. Once everyone is back into shape, we will present you all with a choice; leave on an airship back to the mainland, or remain here at the castle.”

That last part about a choice has Ella curious. “W-What happens if we stay..?” Salem’s smile grows wider, unsettling Ella a bit. It seemed as if Salem was anticipating that question.

“Ah,” says Salem, “that is something you must find out at the day of the choice, should you decide to stay. In the meantime, Tyriana?” Tyriana nods quickly, as if she already knew what Salem was going to ask. Ella is led out of the throne room and back to where she woke up.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the days went by, Ella started to gradually see some of the crew on the ship walking past her room as well. The Huntress, however, was not one of the salvaged. She was surprised by how little she felt for the Huntress’ disappearance; while she was the reason Ella was saved from the streets, Ella had never really felt connected to her. During the time it took for the ship’s crew to awaken, Ella had felt an odd sense of safety within that room. The bed was the softest one she had ever gotten to sleep on, and hearing Tyriana converse with the others from inside her room was calming to her. Tyriana was an enigma herself that Ella was unsure of how to unravel. Many times, the conversations she could hear would allude to something about Salem and an “Activity” that was never elaborated on. It was as if Tyriana was picking and choosing her words deliberately to make Ella curious, which to her credit was working quite well. 

When it came to Salem, however, Ella felt conflicted. Her entire life, people she should have admired had been either cruel or uncaring to her burdens, but then there was Salem. Many times, she would walk by Ella’s doorway and stop there, trying to prompt the girl into conversation. Ella wasn’t much for talking, but Salem didn’t seem worried by that; all she would do is smile, nod in understanding, and then leave. It wasn’t much, but those little gestures stuck to Ella’s mind. A woman dressed in black and red with pale skin and evil looking eyes was showing her more sympathy than anyone else had. It was so strange, but Ella couldn’t bring herself to hate the idea of liking Salem. Not even the frightened jabbering of her crewmates outside the room were enough to deter her. 

After about a month within the castle, the remains of the crew are sent to the throne room. From there, all are instructed to sit at the large table in the center. Ella takes the last seat at the far edge of the table, closest to the door. Tyriana is also seated at the other end of the table, along with two other women; one wears an elaborate coat and has their hair done into a tight bun, while the other is muscular and dressed in green. Salem looks down across the entire table from her throne at the other side of the room, her eyes briefly focusing on Ella for a moment before she speaks to the entire group. “I trust that this time within the castle has been restful and enjoyable to your weary souls, for today is the day you make a choice. I know better than to keep you all here against your will, so I made sure to gather you all when each one of you was able to travel. Now, here is the choice; you can either remain in the castle with me and my subjects, or I can have Miss Watts-” The woman in the bun stands up from her seat. “-take you all back home on an airship ride that would take less than three days. Please, stand if you wish to leave.”

Once the command is issued, the entire crew suddenly stand from their chairs. Salem doesn’t seem fazed by this at all, and simply waves for Miss Watts to escort them out of the throne room. As Watts and the crew stream out of the room, Salem takes note of the one person who did not stand; Ella. As some of the crew glance at her as if she has no sense, Ella keeps her eyes focused on the strange queen. In the days leading up to this, she realized there would be nothing left for her back home. Sure, she can be picked up by another Huntress, but Salem was the only person who has ever given her some kind of care aside from working and leaving her alone with her thoughts. While her exterior was telling Ella she needs to get out of there, the kindness she showed was giving Ella something she hasn’t had in a long time; hope.

Once it’s only Ella alone with the Queen and her subjects, Tyriana smiles from ear to ear. Salem waves her hand down to Tyriana, motioning for her to calm down, and then stands from her throne. “Well then, Miss Fall, it seems you are the only one who remains. If you do not mind me asking, why is it that you decided to stay?” Ella lowers her gaze to the table, unsure if she wishes to expose her burdens to them just yet. As much as she wants to hope Salem was kind, her past experiences made her too timid to accept that fact. This must seem obvious to Salem, for she continues to speak shortly after Ella looks down. “Well, either way, we are glad to have you. You’ll still have the same room and free reign of the castle. If you have any questions, I will always be here. My other subjects are eager to help as well.” Tyriana and the muscular woman both nod. Ella also nods sheepishly to them, wanting to return to her room now. However, as she was getting up, she looks to the two and realizes she does have a question.

“There...is one thing I want to know…” The three look up to her, intrigued. “Over these few days, I’ve...overheard Tyriana and the others talking about...some kind of ‘activity.’ What exactly do you guys do in this castle besides heal crash victims..?” The three then look at each other with a knowing glance. Tyriana smiles the widest of the three, while Salem and the muscular woman seem more reserved with their interest and joy. Salem nods at the two subjects, motioning them to head out of the room. As they leave, Salem walks up to Ella and does the same for her, moving towards the door as she does. Ella follows the Queen, clutching her hands tightly from the nervousness about where they were going taking hold of her. Her question might have gotten her on their bad side and she doesn’t know; the thought of being betrayed by this mysterious small kingdom was terrifying. As the group walks through the castle, they come across one of the locked doors. The muscular woman procures a key from her pocket and unlocks the door. Salem gives Ella a reassuring nod as the door opens, leading to a room Ella isn’t expecting to see.

The room is larger than she expected, for one thing. The walls are lined with shelves containing all sorts of odd-looking things: Paddles, whips, floggers, and different types of constraining items are hung up next to those shelves. On the floor, there are a lot of cushiony pillows and blankets, along with strange structures with built in restraints. Ella has no idea what to make of this room; it looks like a torture chamber, but then why are there pillows on the floor? Her confusion is painted all over her face, leading Salem to break the silence with a chuckle. “My dear, do you not know what this place is for?” Ella figures the confused expression would’ve answered Salem’s question, but shakes her head regardless of such. Salem grins as she nods to Tyriana and the other woman. As they walk deeper into the room, they hold hands the whole way as if there wasn’t a care in the world. From there, the two turn to each other and embrace, Tyriana getting on the tips of her toes to meet the other woman in a loving kiss.

Ella is shocked by this sudden turn of events. She was expecting some kind of dark ritual or torture, but for the two to show such affection was jarring. She looks to Salem, who merely chuckles at Ella’s confusion like a doting mother. “Not what you were expecting, hm? Tyriana and Hazel aren’t following an order from me, I merely allowed them a chance to embrace after a month of keeping this secret.” Ella watches on in surprise as the duo’s kiss becomes more lustful and passionate. Slender and strong hands both hungrily grip at each other’s bodies, exploring every inch of their skin that their clothing allows them to touch. Their tongues intertwine briefly before vanishing into each other's mouths. Salem decides to make herself comfortable and sits upon one of the cushions, motioning for Ella to follow. Ella, however, can’t seem to rip her eyes away from the two making out in front of her. On top of her confusion, she begins to feel a strange longing inside of her the more she watches them. Her cheeks turn a deep shade of red while her hands clutch at each other tightly. Salem takes note of this and gets back up, only to move Ella with her back down to the cushions, with Ella being seated on her lap. Ella stumbles a bit from the sudden movement, but goes along when she feels Salem’s grip on her arm. “Tell me; what do you know about love, Ella?” 

This question is enough to distract Ella for a moment, making her think about what little she knew of love based on snippets of television and word of mouth. “L-Love...Love is when you...care about another person...right?”

Salem looks more than pleased with this answer, smiling brightly to the soft spoken woman on her lap. “That’s right! Now, do you know how to care for a person?”

Now this is something Ella isn’t positive about. She reflects on her past, thinking of the Huntress taking her in as some kind of love, but she isn’t entirely sure it counts considering the aftermath. “Um...when you...help someone in need..?”

Salem nods in understanding, as if she’s slowly piecing together Ella’s life story through these answers. “Indeed, but needs can be anything; from saving a life to saving someone a few lien. You can give love through gifts, kind words, even just a simple smile can communicate love. However, love can also be shown through the indulgence of animalistic urges. Tell me, what do humans and animals have in common?” 

Ella taps her chin, trying to figure out the logic Salem is implying. After a quick glance back at Tyriana and Hazel after Hazel literally ripped the clothes from Tyriana’s body during the kiss, she remembers the few scholarly books left around in the Huntress’ home she tried to use to keep her mind busy. “Uh...making children…?”

Salem’s smile grows wider at that answer. “Exactly. It’s like that old nursery rhyme; ‘First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes babies in a baby carriage.’ However, here we make marriage more of an...optional step. When people fall in love, it’s more than just looks and emotional compatibility, it’s an urge built into our species to ensure our survival. The sooner we embrace this fact, the more love can be spread. In this castle, love is the top priority. Gone are the societal norms of abstinence and the shaming of lust; here, we wear our hearts on our sleeves and embrace its desires!” As Salem’s speech ends, Hazel takes hold of Tyriana’s body and pressed it to the wall, locking eyes with her. With one hand, she pins Tyriana there by her head while she rips the fabric of her tights away, not even bothering to remove them normally. Ella watches in awe as Hazel’s long, rock hard member quickly appears out of her pants and swiftly disappears into Tyriana’s lower lips with zero hesitation, causing the scorpion to mewl out desperately as her eyes roll back and her lips curl into a wide smile. 

Ella is slowly beginning to form her own meaning of this group and their practices. By all accounts, these people should be monsters; a scorpion Faunus, a brooding woman, and a sinister looking Atleasian by the looks of it all under the command of what should be a human Grimm would make anyone run for the hills. However, the world she had lived in before this houses the true monsters in her view. As Hazel ruthlessly fucks Tyriana, they both look so happy and free of worry; something Ella has never experienced in her life. If it wasn’t abuse, it was the cold, unforgiving streets that ignored her, and even when she was given a home by the Huntress, it was nothing more than a structure of wood and concrete, nothing like this palace. In this castle, she was shown basic human decency by a monster, and yet these people would be seen as freaks by the Huntress? By her family? By society? Ella feels her heart boiling with this realization; all her life, she was treated like a monster BY monsters, and in the end, they burned in flames, leaving her alone as a worthless stain on the world…

Salem’s shifting from under her brings her back to the moment. It seems as if she understands what Ella’s thinking and already has a plan of sorts. Taking Ella off of her lap, she then lays herself down on Ella’s lap, much to Ella’s surprise. “I know what you are thinking, Ella.” She says as she makes herself comfortable. “I see it in those burning eyes. You have been given nothing but pain, haven’t you? Pain that you have carried for years.” Ella isn’t sure what Salem is planning, but she knows that Salem has figured her out. She tries to calm herself down, wanting to hold back the resurfacing pain in the form of tears, but Salem lightly grips Ella’s arm. “Don’t. It’s okay. The Grimm cannot enter this castle, so your negativity won’t endanger us. Besides, I know how you can finally release that pain.” Ella looks confused by Salem’s words, and then Salem uses her other hand to reach for the bottom of her dress. Slowly, Salem exposes her backside to Ella while still bent over her lap. Ella is at a complete loss for words, realizing that she is now in the position her father was whenever she had angered him. Salem speaks to her softly, letting her arms fold in front of her chin. “Do not worry about hurting me, I can easily take it. Let the anger inside you flow freely. Free yourself from your shackles so you may learn to embrace yourself.”

Ella feels conflicted inside. She knows better than to ever raise her hand to anyone after all the threats made by her family in her past, and yet someone who cared about her more than that same family was encouraging this? It was completely backwards! There must be consequences for doing such a thing, right? However, as she stares down at the bare ass of Salem and listens to the grunts and moans coming from Tyriana and Hazel, she can feel something bubbling up inside of her; A desire, no, an urge to let herself go free. One of her hands grips the pillow she sits on tightly as the other hand trembles over Salem’s ass. Her breath is shaky, her throat feels dry. In her mind, she’s standing at the precipice of a new side of herself she had no idea of. She fears whatever this means, worried for what could happen in the future should she take this path, but something pulls her from these thoughts; a kiss. During her inner debate, Salem left a soft kiss on Ella’s hand. While this gesture is in itself very small, it helped make up Ella’s mind. Nothing that wanted to hurt her would ever leave such a gentle kiss, right? With her mind clear, she inhales sharply through her nose, closes her eyes, and swings her hand down as hard as she can.

Instead of angry words, Ella’s ears are met with a moan; Salem’s moan. 

Ella sees red.

She doesn’t realize how long she stays in that spot with Salem on her lap. All she knows is that she’s not showing any mercy. Her hand cracks down upon Salem’s bare ass time and time again, nearly making her hand bleed raw from how fast and hard she spanks. Salem’s lustful yelps and moans only add fuel to the fire in Ella’s heart as she releases everything she had toiled through in her life; every strike, every slap, every insult, every minute spent cleaning and cooking, every act that struck her soul is being pulled out of her as she goes into a frenzy. Before her hand could really bleed, Hazel walks away from Tyriana’s creampied body and slips something into her hand without her knowing; a wooden paddle. She doesn’t know why, but that only seems to make Salem moan out louder, so she keeps using it. The sounds of slapping and spanking echoes through the room as Ella pours every ounce of her frustration into this seemingly invincible ass, for while it does turn red, it never draws blood. With one final slap, after what feels like hours, Ella finally gives out. She’s exhausted from such an emotional high and falls backwards into more pillows, drifting off to sleep. Salem, meanwhile, has the help of Hazel and Tyriana to get back to her feet with a satisfied sigh. “My goodness...she is most definitely a keeper.” 

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Ella wakes back up in the same room she had woken up in for the past month, only she is not alone. Salem is sitting on the edge of the bed, smiling at her. “Good morning, my dear,” she would coo with a soft voice. “You seem much more well rested after yesterday. How do you feel?”

Ella looks down at her hands, noticing one was bandaged. Slowly, she remembers the night prior and how she got her hand damaged enough to be bandaged. However, she doesn’t feel remorse from this; rather, she feels a strange sense of...enjoyment from the memory. “I feel...I feel like I’ve become something new..” Salem raises an eyebrow to this, prompting Ella to continue. “Like...after you said those things and had me do..well, had me spank you, I feel like I’ve been given new life. It’s hard to describe, but it’s almost like I’m...powerful now.”

Salem nods, shifting in her spot to face Ella directly. “So, you feel as if you are a new person, then? That’s wonderful to hear, because today is the start of a new life for you. With our help, you will spread the love you received here to all who seek it out, and we can get started on your training today should you feel up to it. What say you, Ella?” 

Ella looks to Salem for a moment, then back to her hands. She thinks of what had brought her to this new start, how all of what used to be her past has burned to the ground. Her pain, her loneliness, her sorrow, all of it had been reduced to ash. It can’t hurt her anymore, not when the instigators of her pain were both dead. Now, all that remained was a single cinder that sparks into a small flame of passion. “...Ella would never be ready for something like this. But I am.”

Salem seems confused for a moment. “Oh? Then who are you now?” The woman meets Salem’s red eyes with her lone burning amber. A smile slowly spreads across her lips as a flame dances within her visible eye.

“Cinder. Cinder Fall.”


	2. Initiation

The flames of the candles dance across the wicks, casting shadows across the long, purple halls. The sounds of monstrous roars and screeches are hardly enough to truly break the eerie silence of the castle. Despite this, Cinder’s thoughts echo the loudest in her head. Days ago, she had come to reject her upbringing and embrace a new life, yet the idea of being a new person was still strange to her. Her past had been a shadow that darkened everywhere she looked, but now she wishes for that shadow to begone so she may begin anew. However, that’s easier said than done; Even with how liberating it felt to just smack Salem’s ass over and over, it didn’t last long enough. She wants to do more of that, to feel that flame inside of her once more, but she doesn’t know how. For a moment, she considers going out of the room and asking one of the others, but she didn’t want to bother them. They were still waiting for Watts to come back for her so-called “initiation” to begin, so she didn’t want to seem impatient to them. So, she just lays there on her bed, waiting and thinking of what to do. 

She looks down at her bandaged hand, trying to think of how she can pass the time. She reflects back on how she injured it in the first place, then how it started. She remembers Hazel and Tyriana kissing, and then them fucking, all the while she felt this strange tingle in her loins. As she thinks about it, she starts to feel that very same tingle again. Curious about this, she moves her better hand down past her small skirt. She sits up, feeling at her clothed pussy just to see how she would like. As she touches it, that tingling feeling spikes in intensity somewhat, as if a spark lights inside of her. Starting to remember this spark from yesterday, she continues to rub at her pussy with two fingers pressed together, her breathing starting to slow down into passionate gasps. Her fingers curl, then unfold slowly, then start to gradually speed up as she feels the spark in her grow into that familiar warmth. She lays on her side, shutting her eyes as she strokes at her virgin cunt, moaning softly against her pillow. Her legs squirm, rolling her active hand around between her thighs. Her bandaged hand softly grips at her chest, her clothing beginning to feel suffocating as this new feeling takes hold of her.

“Well now, it seems you’re already exploring yourself~”

Her eyes quickly open as she hears the familiar voice. In the doorway stands Salem, smirking with delight at Cinder’s position. Cinder pulls her hand out from her thighs, sitting up quickly as her face reddens. She got so lost in her exploration that she didn’t realize Salem was drawing near. Then again, that could also be because Salem doesn’t seem to wear shoes under that dress. Salem merely chuckles at Cinder’s shocked expression, moving into the room.

“You don’t have to be embarrassed, you know. In fact, that’s the very reason I came here in the first place.”

“I-It is..?” asks a very confused Cinder.

Salem nods. “Indeed it is. I felt bad after last night; You put in all that work to spank me raw and ended up leaving unsatisfied. You even hurt your hand! I can’t leave my newest member like that in good faith.”

As Cinder ponders on what Salem meant, Salem moves from the doorframe to the foot of the bed. Cinder watches curiously as Salem lays herself between Cinder’s legs, smirking from her spot.

“Allow me to finish what you started, my dear.”

With that, Cinder blushes as she realizes what Salem is doing. Salem takes the edge of Cinder’s skirt and pushes it upwards, looking down at the lace hiding Cinder’s most private region. Cinder looks down at Salem, feeling her cheeks warm. Salem only smirks in response, pinching the delicate fabric between her fingers before slowly pulling it down, running them down her slender legs and leaving them on the side of the bed. Cinder isn’t sure how she should be responding to this, and yet she doesn’t feel compelled to stop it. It’s as if her body is frozen in anticipation, awaiting the touch of her new master. Being owned by her father had left her afraid and silent, being owned by the Huntress had left her cynical and wanting, but now being owned by Salem is filling Cinder with a feeling she had never known before. A feeling she didn’t want to let go of.

Salem licks her lips at the sight of Cinder’s lower lips. To Cinder’s confusion, it seems that Salem feels nostalgic at the sight. “Aw, how adorable…” Salem says in a breathy tone, her finger lightly brushing through the small grove of hairs just above Cinder’s pearl. “Still only a rosebud in comparison to the flowers I’ve helped blossom in this castle. Well trimmed, surprisingly. If that crew you were with were any indication of your company, I would’ve assumed you hardly had time for self care. No noticeable tan, either. Dare I say, you could be as pale as I am.” Salem chuckles at her own little joke before she lazily drags the tip of her finger around the folds of Cinder’s so-called flower, leaving Cinder to gasp and shudder at the sudden spark of pleasure. Salem gasps softly, but quickly chuckles. “Aw, how cute! I love it when they wink from such a small touch. What a pretty little pussy you have, my dear Cinder.”

Cinder finds it difficult to keep her breathing in control. With every little poke and prod down below her waist, a gasp, moan, or whine quickly follows. Cinder writhes in place, clutching her own arms as she lays helpless to the queen’s touch. Salem seems to delight in these sounds; each one Cinder makes leads to another compliment from the pale woman. “You make the cutest sounds, my sweet,” “Gods, I could just listen to your voice until the end of time,” “Oh! It’s winking again!,” and “To think, I get to have such a beautiful flower in my arms once more. I couldn’t be more lucky,” among many others are spoken. Cinder doesn’t know why, but each compliment is like a sweet poison to her mind and body; to be so deprived of love for years had left her content in knowing she is useless, and now that knowledge is being put into question by the soothing words and gentle touches. Cinder feels as if she can melt into the bed from this treatment, unable to find solace in being useless anymore. She wants to be a beautiful flower, she wants to make more cute sounds, but most of all…

She wants all of the love Salem can give.

However, a voice at the doorway stops the touches, leaving Cinder to whine softly in frustration. “Pardon the interruption, my Queen.”

Cinder opens her eyes to see Hazel standing in the doorway, holding a Scroll device in her hands. Salem moves her head back up to look at Hazel. “Ah, Hazel! Do you have an update for me?”

Hazel nods. “I’ve gotten word from Watts that she will be landing in five minutes. I already have Tyriana preparing the initiation room.”

“Excellent. Be a dear and help her set up, would you? I’ll go welcome Watts back.”

Hazel nods once more before leaving. As Salem climbs off of the bed, Cinder feels a sudden rush of emotion hit her. Is it despair? Disappointment? She doesn’t know, but she doesn’t want to feel it anymore. She reaches out to Salem, gripping the black silk of her dress. Salem turns and chuckles softly before leaning down to place a kiss on her new subject’s forehead. “Worry not, my dear. You will be able to delight in my touch again shortly. The initiation will begin soon.” With those words, Salem leaves the room while Cinder lays and pines for her touch to grace her again.

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Each second feels like an hour, each minute feels like an eternity. Cinder watches the doorway with bated breath, waiting for her Queen to return. Her desperation confuses her deeply; she has never felt this strongly about someone in a long time, back when she would silently hope for her mother to one day return and make her birth no longer a mistake in her father’s eyes. Only this time, there is no certainty of death with Salem. She WILL come back, and Cinder is desperate for that moment to be right this second. Ten minutes she waits, hoping this ache in her loins will die down instead of reminding her of the Queen’s touch, until something strange appears in the doorway. A floating orb with long, red tendrils hanging from its underside connected to a mass of pulsating black muscle and teeth. Cinder sits up, confused by this orb-creature. It floats there gently, seemingly fixated on Cinder, before slowly drifting to the left of the doorway, disappearing from sight. Cinder, curious of this movement, stands from her bed and follows it, unknowingly leaving her discarded panties behind. 

As Cinder tails the orb, she gazes around the castle walls. As she looks, she spots several areas where sections of the wall were lighter than others, as if there were pictures hung on them long before. Cinder can’t see any holes in these spots where nails would’ve been driven into, so these spots quickly become a mystery in her mind. Soon, the orb leads Cinder to an open door leading to a stairway going down. Cinder glances at the stationary orb for a moment before descending these stairs, thinking the orb had finished its job. At the bottom of this stairway, Cinder finds a large, circular room with a single black chain hanging from the ceiling. Just under the chain is a small platform, and around that was a strange symbol painted in black. As Cinder walks into this room, she gazes up to see that the chain is attached to a very large glass chandelier, illuminating the room with similar purple crystals as the throne room. The stone floor below her feet gave a resounding clack with each step she made towards the platform.

As she steps onto the platform, she sees a figure coming from the shadows just beyond the chandelier’s reach. Even if they’re cloaked in black, Cinder can still recognize the long, black tail that belongs to Tyrianna sticking out from the back of it. The outfit itself is more like Salem’s, only without the opening on the chest and a hood added to it as well. Tyrianna approaches Cinder silently, her arms tucked behind her back neatly. Once she arrives, Tyrianna brings her arms out from behind her back, showing Cinder that she was carrying a set of fuzzy handcuffs. Cinder looks concerned when they come out, but Tyriana is quick to attempt calming her down. “Worry not, Cinder. These are not meant to punish you. In fact, if you trust yourself enough to complete this ritual without them, they will be gone. The choice is yours.”

Cinder looks to Tyrianna, then the cuffs. She doesn’t feel like being restrained will go positively for her; she had moments in her childhood where her step sisters tied her to trees outside for a day because she got a tea flavor wrong. Her step sisters aren’t the ones doing this, however. It’s the people she’s felt more trust for than anyone else in her life. Salem wouldn’t strain her just to punish her, would she? She doesn’t want to let Salem down; she wants to be her beautiful flower. With a deep breath, Cinder raises her wrists up to Tyriana, a silent offering to chain them. Under the hood, Tyriana smiles warmly and proceeds to click them onto Cinder’s wrists. Cinder is surprised with how nice they felt; not the most comfortable, but better than she was expecting. With that done, Tyriana raises Cinder’s bound hands to the chain, in which she connects the handcuffs to them via a clip hanging from the last link of the chain. Cinder isn’t too fond of her arms being stuck above her head, but she can stomach it for Salem. With that, Tyriana would move to Cinder’s side, awaiting for something.

Cinder doesn’t have to wonder long for what it could be, for a new figure cloaked in the same outfit as Tyriana stepped out of the shadows ahead. This time, they carried a thin, flat bowl full of a clear liquid; it’s surface illuminated by the purple light filling the room. Cinder assumes this person was Watts, seeing as they aren’t a giant like Hazel and definitely not Salem considering her proportions. Once Watts was in front of Cinder, she slowly held the bowl up to Cinder’s lips. Cinder, feeling a little thirsty from the wait, parts her lips enough to allow the liquid to slowly pour into her mouth and down her gullet. It tastes oddly sweet, much to Cinder’s surprise, but there was something odd to it that she can’t quite pin down. She gasps softly once she has finished the last drop, feeling some of it still trickle down the sides of her face. Watts, looking pleased, moves to the other side of Cinder and sets the bowl down, awaiting the next figure to arrive. 

As Salem steps out from the shadows, Cinder looks in shock. She thought there was going to be some kind of pattern where Salem was last, but apparently not. Salem smiles as she approaches Cinder, raising her hands to gently wipe away the leftover juice from Cinder’s cheeks. “Ah, my beautiful flower...How wonderful it is to see you like this. How are you feeling?”

Cinder still isn’t sure how to take these questions, so she answers honestly. “Like...I’m hanging from a ceiling?

Salem chuckles in response. “Well, that would be what is happening to you, yes. I trust the bindings are comfortable?”

“Y-Yeah, they’re okay…” Cinder shyly huffs out, her cheeks turning a soft red.

“And what of the wine? How was that?”

Cinder’s eyes widen at this. So that was wine she just drank? She had never gotten a taste of it, especially when her father drank it all. No wonder it kind of tasted funny. “It tasted nice...better than I thought, actually…” Cinder shifts her legs a little, starting to feel a strange heat in her loins. Perhaps it was Salem’s compliments again…

“Good, good. Everything is coming together. Now, are you ready for your initiation, my dear?” Cinder can’t understand why, but the heat she felt before with Salem has returned all of a sudden. She rubs her thighs together a bit, unknowingly triggering smiles for Watts and Tyriana. Cinder nods slowly, even if she’s confused by this sudden heat. “Excellent!”, says a beaming Salem. She then looks to Tyriana and Watts, who both nod in return. They step back as Salem slowly moves her hands down from Cinder’s cheeks. Cinder’s body gradually starts to feel more and more sensitive to Salem’s touch as she goes from soft touches on the neck to sliding her hands across Cinder’s restrained arms. She lightly brushes Cinder’s hair back so she may lock eyes with both of her burning amber orbs. Cinder’s breath hitches in a feverish gasp as Salem caresses her contained chest. She rolls her hands over them for a moment before sliding them to Cinder’s back, grasping the zipper of Cinder’s dress. Without removing her eyes from Cinder’s sight, Salem pulls the zipper down as far as it would go. Cinder feels a strange sense of relief from her dress slowly falling off of her body; It feels as if a great weight lifted off of her chest, and also as if a rush of excitement shot through her bloodstream. Exposing her lower lips was one thing, but her entire body both in front of her and two others...it gave her a thrill she had never known before. 

Salem’s smile grows wider as she sees more of Cinder’s pale skin. Cinder hears a small snap behind her before she feels the support of her bra falling from her chest as well. As she looks down, she realizes how exposed she truly was before the lustful eyes of the Queen, and just how chilly this room was. Despite the cold, however, the warmth Cinder feels from her sudden spike of arousal leaves her panting softly as Salem holds her cheeks once more. As the two lock eyes again, Salem licks her lips as she leans in closer, bringing their faces closer and closer until she can feel the warmth of Cinder’s lips against her own. The kiss takes Cinder by surprise at first, but she then realizes how her body was desperately craving this contact and gave into its desires. The kiss is gentle at first, but then slowly begins to ramp up in intensity as Salem pushes her tongue into Cinder’s mouth. Cinder can feel Salem’s lustful tongue roaming freely inside of Cinder’s mouth, claiming every inch of it with her saliva; teeth, gums, and especially Cinder’s tongue were powerless to the lustful embrace of the Queen. Cinder takes hurried breaths from her nose as she feels a lone finger trace its way down from her neck to between her breast and finally ending right above Cinder’s bush. Cinder’s eyes shut tight from the agonizingly slow contact combining with the lustful kiss, leaving her to struggle meekly against the handcuffs holding her. Unbeknownst to Cinder in this moment, Salem allows the long forgotten magic within her to reappear as she paints a symbol on Cinder’s pelvis with red light. With a snap, the light becomes a black tattoo on Cinder’s pelvis, marking her as one of Salem’s court. 

Salem then pulls away, allowing the meek Cinder a chance to catch her breath with large gulps of air. Salem smiles as she admires the woman before her; chained, bare, and with a mark just over where her womb lies behind Cinder’s flesh and bone. Cinder shudders, pleading with her eyes for Salem to continue making her every breath, every inch of her body belong to her Queen, for now she could never go back to believing she was useless. No, in Salem’s eyes, Cinder feels as if she has become the world. “Aww, don’t despair, darling.”, Salem says, “You will not go unsatisfied for another moment longer. Now, the final part of your initiation shall begin.”

As if on cue, Cinder hears footsteps approaching her from behind. She turns and sees the familiar towering frame of Hazel approach from the stairs. Hazel, however, was not in the same garb as the others. Cinder hardly considers it a garb; it was a collection of metal rings, leather straps, and a single black hood hiding Hazel’s face, which means the rest was out and open for all to see. Cinders eyes lock onto the reason behind Hazel’s hurried steps and feels her breathing get faster. Is she excited to see an aroused Hazel coming towards her? Is she happy to be powerless to stop her? She doesn’t fully understand, but after such an intoxicating kiss, she was feeling her grasp on logic slipping. Once Hazel is close enough, she looks down at Cinder and pulls her hood off of her face. Cinder sees a strange hesitation in Hazel’s expression, as if she was just as unsure as Cinder was. “She needs to hear you accept, my dear.” Salem chimes in. As Cinder remembers when Hazel and Tyriana were making love days before, she realizes it must’ve been different for her. Hazel doesn’t know Cinder as well, and Cinder needed to show she was willing. She isn’t sure if she could bring herself to speak loud enough, so instead, Cinder slowly protrudes her hips slightly towards Hazel.

“P-Please...I want...to be one of you.”

As she watches Hazel, she sees the restraint leave her expression as she nods. Cinder then feels Hazel’s strong hands grip her hips tightly as she steps onto the platform. Cinder can feel her heart beating as she realizes just what she’s accepted. She'd never touched herself up until a couple of minutes ago, and now she was about to be made into a woman. She feels a dryness in her throat, but as she looks up to Salem’s smiling face, she feels a sense of calm. At the first touch of Hazel’s tip, Cinder’s back straightens in surprise. Hazel slowly brings one hand from Cinder’s hip to gently caress Cinder’s cheek, comforting her as she lines up. Slowly, like gentle taps of a hammer onto a nail, Hazel thrusts herself past Cinder’s lower lips, spreading them wider than they ever had before. Cinder lets out breathless moans and gasps as she feels herself being spread open by Hazel’s girth. Within seconds, she feels Hazel’s member reach what she thinks is the point of no return, only to feel the barrier shatter in one swift thrust. Cinder gasps out in sudden pain, but Hazel holds her close to her chest, staying still. The gentleness of this giant makes Cinder blush against her hand, creating a very lovely visual for Salem to enjoy.

For a few moments, Hazel remains still and provides Cinder with comfort as she recovers. Once the pain subsides, Cinder gives Hazel a slight nod to allow her a chance to continue. She feels Hazel’s rod slowly pulling out of her, the friction bringing the last piece of the puzzle Cinder needed for her understanding of lust to be completed. She stops just as the head of her member is resting inside of Cinder before swiftly thrusting it all back in, setting Cinder’s loins aflame with lust. Cinder cries out in a shocked moan as she feels all of Hazel hilted inside of her, striking against her cervix, before Hazel repeats the process again. With each slide out, Cinder shudders out a drawn out moan, and with each harsh thrust back in, she cries out in lustful euphoria. This process continues again and again and again, getting faster and faster until Hazel’s hips begin to work like a jackhammer against Cinder’s insides. Cinder’s moans echo across the room along with Hazel’s grunts and the raw, wet slapping of their bodies crashing together to create a symphony of erotic music that delights Salem and her subjects to no end. Cinder feels her mind slipping, preoccupied by the intense feelings coursing through her body with each thrust. Her chest and waist are wrapped in Hazel’s strong arms, leaving her legs to shake against the mighty torrent of pleasure. The coil in her that tightened before was getting tighter and tighter now, leading to her insides tightening around Hazel’s pounding rod, creating more friction that sent waves of pleasure through her. Her moans become hurried breaths as she can feel something coming inside her, a feeling she had no idea what it meant. The pressure in her loins keeps building and building until finally, it explodes. Cinder screams out in a high-pitched cry as her walls constrict as tightly as they can around Hazel’s rod, her juices spewing from her lower lips and connecting to her lower mounds as well as Hazel’s pelvis. Cinder’s legs shake as Hazel hilts inside of her once again, allowing her to ride out the intensity of her first orgasm in relative peace. White flashes cloud her vision as small tears stream down her face. Her mouth hangs open, trapped as she struggles to give her lungs the air they need. In these moments, Cinder is in absolute bliss.

However, Hazel was far from finished. As Cinder sighs from the afterglow setting in, Hazel gets right back to hammering away at her tight cunt, surprising Cinder greatly. Cinder is powerless to stop this hammering and accepts the love Hazel has to give, moaning and gasping freely. She feels herself cum once more before she feels the throbbing of Hazel’s member inside of her. Without warning, Hazel hilts herself as deep as she can inside of Cinder and allows her rod to finally burst. Each shot of her seed sticks itself into the inside of Cinder’s womb, and whatever doesn’t fit quickly fills the rest of Cinder’s canal. The warmth of Hazel’s seed left Cinder to softly moan and sigh as she’s filled by the strong woman holding her. She looks to Salem, who must’ve disrobed while Cinder was distracted, for now she was allowing Watts and Tyriana to lick and suckle at her holes. She gives Cinder a proud smile before Hazel begins to start up again, not yet satisfied with how much Cinder was filled. Cinder couldn’t tell how long the pleasure lasted or how many times anyone came, but she knows that it was the greatest night of her life. She had always been owned by someone, either to be hurt or to be pitied. Now, in this castle, Cinder is owned by those she loves and those owners love her back, and by the Gods, she would never want to be owned by another again. After what felt like hours, Cinder feels her body wind down after one last orgasm. As the afterglow sets in, Cinder drifts off to sleep, still being held in Hazel’s arms. Her last sight before sleep was of Salem smiling at her.


	3. Lessons

“That’s it, dear...take it nice and slow, just like that.”

Cinder’s ears tingle from the whispers Tyriana breathes onto her, echoing along with her own slow breaths inside of her empty bedroom. She stares with half-lidded eyes at the deep maroon wall in front of her, the pink toy suctioned to the wall popping into view every second or so. Her legs feel cold despite the blanket and pillow they sit upon, yet the rest of her nude body is warm from the tender hold Tyriana’s arms have on her. She can feel the saliva coming from her “practice” beginning to drip off of her chin and land on her knees. Tyriana keeps a strand of hair out of Cinder’s eyes, her gentle touch stirring Cinder’s loins even further. Ever since her initiation three days ago, she has been practicing the methods one must do in order to pleasure a woman, starting with very simple actions. Yesterday, she got to practice on Salem herself on how to best pleasure a vagina, and today is a lesson all about something called a blowjob. Cinder didn’t know what that meant at first, but she has a pretty good idea of what it means now.

“You’re doing wonderfully”, Tyriana coos into Cinder’s ear, sending chills down her spine. Cinder slowly works more and more of the pink toy into her mouth, going further down it’s length with each bob of her head. Even if it’s plastic, Cinder doesn’t mind its taste; her sisters made her eat worse things as punishment before. It’s smooth surface made it easy for her tongue to glide across its underside, allowing Cinder to work more on her tongue’s flexibility. Even as its tip threatens to reach closer to her uvula, Cinder does her best to stay calm and focus on taking slow breaths through her nose. Cinder feels Tyriana’s hand move from one of her breasts to the back of her head, making her stop in confusion. “Now,” Tyriana says as she looks Cinder in the eyes, “I am going to slowly push you as far as you can go. If you can’t take it, feel free to grab my wrist and I’ll stop, okay?” Cinder meekly nods with the tip of the dildo in her mouth, feeling butterflies in her stomach.

Noting this, Tyriana gives Cinder a warm smile. “It’s okay to be afraid, Cinder. This is something that takes time and practice. If you can’t take the full length right now, it’s perfectly fine. You have been doing wonderfully in your instruction so far, so please give yourself a bit of grace.” Cinder receives a small kiss on the cheek, making it red from flattery. Tyriana was such a patient person to her, even if she could be oddly excitable at times. She seems to have such a close relationship with Salem, too, even closer than Hazel and Watts. Even with the short time they’ve known each other, Cinder can feel a sense of comfort around the scorpion. Now feeling more at ease, Cinder closes her eyes and focuses on her breathing. Tyriana slowly begins to push Cinder’s head forward down the length of the fake cock. Cinder could feel her throat beginning to resist the sudden intrusion, no matter how much she mentally prepared. She manages to get halfway before the toy feels like it’s coming in too far. Quickly, she reaches to Tyriana’s wrist, grabbing it tightly. Almost immediately, Tyriana pulls Cinder’s head away, allowing Cinder a chance to cough for a second before feeding her greedy lungs with a long gasp. Tyriana holds the panting Cinder close to her, stroking her hair and gently wrapping her tail around her waist, stinger facing away from the two of them, of course. “Shhh, it’s okay,” Tyriana softly speaks, “You did very well. We’ll try again in a little bit, okay? Just rest for now.” Cinder is all too eager to take advantage of this resting period, leaning into Tyriana’s hold while she catches her breath.

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Up, then down, then through, and then up again. Wait, no, that’s not how it works.

Cinder fumbles with the same strands of rope that have been puzzling her all day. If the practice dummy in front of her was alive, it would most likely be as impatient with her as she was with herself. Cinder feels dread every time she messes up the knot on the back, fearing what Watts may be thinking of her. Failure is still something she struggles with, even with Salem’s kindness and Tyriana’s encouragement. These new people she lives with mean everything to her now, so she absolutely cannot let them down. If only this Shibari thing wasn’t so complicated, it was beginning to make her angry. Watts, standing besides her, notices this and touches Cinder’s shoulder, pulling her from her work. “Cinder, do you need a break?”, she asks.

Cinder feels a small twinge of panic take her, gripping the bundles of rope tighter as she whips her head back to face Watts. “N-No!”, she yells, “I can still do it! J-Just give me more time, I can-” Watts quickly puts up another hand, motioning for her to stop. Cinder quickly shuts her lips, nervously looking up at the very patient looking Watts. She doesn’t know what to expect from her, but if this was anything like when she had to learn to do chores as a child, she will not be able to handle it. 

Watts, however, has a much different approach than Cinder’s family. “There is no rush for you to learn the Shibari style of bondage. It’s a very complicated practice, most often used for decoration and pampering your submissive partners. Purely optional, but a good skill for when you get your own compound.” Cinder visibly shrinks at the reminder. All of the training she’s been going through for a month was all for her to own a separate branch of Salem’s empire; a way for her word to spread slowly into the four kingdoms. She feels a lot of pressure from this job, but the others insist that she’ll be fine, bringing another reason to why she cannot allow herself to let them down. Watts continues, noticing how Cinder looks more dreadful about the mention of the compound. “Cinder, when pursuing knowledge, you cannot allow your mind to be focused on one thing; you need an open mind to see every possibility. You’ve already made good progress on your lovemaking techniques and simple knots, that’s nothing to scoff at. Perhaps I can teach you another thing? Just for a moment?”

Cinder feels a little less panic in knowing that she isn’t being punished and sets the ropes down on the table. She nods a little to Watts, making her smile down at Cinder. “Excellent.”, Watts says as she leads Cinder by her shoulder to one of the lavish couches in the room. Sitting Cinder down, Watts heads to the countertop where an assortment of toys are placed. She picks up a blue dildo that seems oddly stiff compared to most dildos Cinder has practiced with. She takes a seat next to Cinder and holds it a couple of inches away from her face. “Can you tell me what this is?”

Cinder’s eyebrows furrow in confusion. It was long, blue, slightly ribbed, and even had the fake testacles at the base, but something seems off about it. “It’s...a dildo?”

Watts smiles to herself before instructing Cinder to spread her legs. Cinder had gotten used to walking around naked, so being asked to spread her legs is usual by now. Be it either for training or just to give her a parting gift before bed, Cinder is usually eager to spread her legs. Watts presses the dildo against her lips first, giving Cinder a chance to practice more of her deep throat techniques. She slows her breathing, then opens her mouth, allowing Watts to slip the dildo into her mouth, all the way to the back of her neck. Despite the small gag, Cinder is able to keep it there, licking it and sucking on it softly to get it nice and wet. After a couple of seconds, Watts pulls it back out, allowing Cinder to breathe through her mouth again. “Your deepthroating skills have certainly gotten better. Tyriana’s taught you well.”, Watts comments as she slides the tip of the dildo down slowly from the center of Cinder’s neck to between her breasts and finally to her lower lips, leaving a trail of goosebumps along the way. Slowly, she pushes into Cinder’s pussy, leaving Cinder’s breath to hitch as it spreads her open once more. Once its length is buried up to the base in Cinder, Watts leaves it there for a moment, keeping her hand on the bottom side. She leans in close to Cinder and whispers; “You see, Cinder, the pursuit of knowledge is never as straightforward as it seems. There is always room for mistakes…” With a smirk, Watts’ finger flicks a small switch at the bottom of the dildo, causing it to suddenly whir to life as it vibrates inside of Cinder. “...and plenty of room of discovery.” Cinder gasps and moans out in both shock and surprise, writhing in her seat as the dildo shakes without restraint. Watts holds the dildo in place, delighting in seeing Cinder’s lips slowly curl up as the pleasure wracks her mind. “Once you finish up with this, we’ll get back to practicing rope ties. I’m thinking we should just go to the chest harness instead of starting with full on Shibari, make it a tad easier, but that’s for later. For now, enjoy yourself.”

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“Pain is not just discomfort.”

Cinder watches as Hazel paces the floor in front of her, a cat o’ nine tails being clutched in her strong, leather-cloaked hands. She has the same harness outfit she wore during Cinder’s initiation, only with the addition of forearm length leather gloves and matching thigh-high leather boots. Cinder grips the arm rests of the chair, feeling a little nervous every time Hazel lightly smacks the cat o’ nine in her palm. The cold leather gloves and thigh highs she was told to wear for this lesson feel strange against her skin, its black surface reflecting the purple candlelight. The lessons thus far have all been relatively tame, but this one is giving Cinder goosebumps. Tyriana and Watts are hanging from the ceiling by their wrists, completely bare and with their backsides facing Cinder’s seat. As arousing as the sight should be, Cinder can only keep her eyes on that menacing cat o’ nine Hazel held.

“Pain is one of the most dangerous things you can give to a person.”, Hazel continues, twisting the nine tails in her grip. “In terms of both common sense and especially in terms of lovemaking.” She stops next to Tyriana, releasing the tails and slinging them over her shoulder. “It is extremely important to know the person you are with, their desires, and most importantly, their limits. For example…” Hazel then raises the cat o’ nine in the air and brings the tails down on Tyriana’s bare ass. Cinder flinches in surprise from the resounding smack, but Tyriana sputters out a high pitched moan from the sudden impact. “Tyriana is very accepting of pain, but on the other hand..” She then strikes Watts in the same fashion, who spits out a pained swear in response. “Watts does not accept pain willingly. You’ve been learning how to pleasure people with mostly universal interests. Today, however, we’ll be teaching you how to use more painful instruments for those who would desire it.”

As Hazel goes to get Watts down from the hooks keeping her tied wrists above her head, Cinder feels a sense of dread take her. Even when she took out all of her contained anger out on Salem around two months ago, she still feels a sense of nervousness when it comes to hurting people. Now she’s being expected to learn how to hurt people specifically? She looks down, clutching her hands tightly, remembering how she blacked out spanking Salem, like she was in a blind frenzy. If she was going to be doing this for complete strangers, she doesn’t want to get like that again. Hazel, taking note of Cinder’s troubled expression, finishes untying Watts’ wrists and goes to Cinder, kneeling in front of her. She puts a hand on Cinder’s shoulder, a glimmer of sympathy in her eyes. “I understand why you are concerned about this lesson. You’ve been through a lot of abuse in your youth, and it’s given you a big heart. I can assure you, whenever you have to deliver pain, it will be asked for and wanted. Worst case scenario, you can object to hurting them as well. It’s just good to know these things in case they ask and if you want to. Tyriana asked to be the test subject for this one, so she is willing to accept whatever we do. Isn’t that right, Tyriana?” Tyriana looks over her shoulder and nods enthusiastically.

Cinder feels her shoulders relax after Hazel’s speech. Hazel has such a strange tone to her; while she’s physically intimidating, she has such a gentle tone whenever she speaks to Cinder. Cinder looks in Hazel’s eyes, seeing the glimmer of wisdom behind them. Cinder doesn’t know a lot about Hazel’s history, so moments like this often come out of the woodwork, contrasting with the intimidation she often has. Even so, seeing Hazel as a gentle giant gives Cinder a warm feeling in her chest. She smiles softly at Hazel, who nods in return. “So, do you think you can handle this lesson?” Feeling that Hazel would prevent anything bad happening after that speech, Cinder nods. Hazel stands and walks over to the wall of mounted tools of pain, giving Cinder a chance to hop out of the seat. 

In front of the wall is a small assortment of objects already pulled down from the wall: A leather whip, a wax candle already burning in a dish, a wooden paddle, the cat o’ nine tails now returned to the table, and two clothespins. Cinder cocks an eyebrow at the spread of items, looking from behind Hazel’s backside. Hazel picks up one of the two clothespins and turns to face Cinder. “These are commonly used for long durations, since the sensation of pinching is not a very intense pain. You can apply them like so.” Hazel walks up to Tyriana’s excitable body and hands Cinder the pins. “Now, before you put those on her, you must establish an agreement with your lover before you can administer pain.” Cinder looks confused, but Hazel continues before she can speak. “I know I said that Tyriana is willing and she still is. This is just for you to practice what to say with others before you begin. Now, you want to ask them if they have a safe word; what that means is if they say that word specifically, you stop everything. Get them down, treat any injuries, and ensure their mental wellbeing. Of course, you should do this every time you finish a session, but especially when they say a safe word. Now, go on.”

Cinder gulps nervously, holding the clothespins in her hands as she steps closer to Tyriana. “Um...do you...have a safe word…?”

Tyriana, eager to play along, taps her chin with the blunt part of her tail. “Hm...Amber, like your wonderful eyes, Mistress.”

Cinder feels her face turn red as she’s called that, but quickly nods. She then moves her arms up slowly and clamps the two pins on her nipples, leaving Tyriana to yelp with excited shivers. Cinder winces a bit at the snaps, but Tyriana’s smile eases her a little bit. Motioning for Cinder to stay put, Hazel moves over to the table again and brings the wooden paddle to Cinder. Cinder hesitantly takes it from her, faintly remembering how she smacked it against Salem’s ass as she feels its weight in her hand. Hazel leads Cinder around to Tyriana’s backside by her shoulder. “Now, I’m sure you know how to use this already, so I won’t explain. Now, go ahead and use it five times.” Cinder takes a deep breath, slowly living the paddle up before bringing it right against Tyriana’s rear. Tyriana gasps and shudders again, eagerly rubbing her thighs together. Seeing Tyriana’s reactions make Cinder feel a little less bad about what she’s doing. On the next four strikes, Cinder show’s less and less restraint, much to the delight of Tyriana and Hazel. Cinder stares as Tyriana’s backside slowly turns red from the impact of the blows, feeling that familiar burn in her loins. She bites her lip softly as an unfamiliar toxin rushes through her body, fueling that flame in a way that gentle care can’t do. Hazel, noticing this, leans closer to Cinder’s ear.

“You feel it, don’t you? The excitement. The curiosity. The power. To give pain to someone who trusts you with their life, it is a high that cannot be obtained anywhere else.” Hazel grins while slowly taking the paddle away and swapping it out with the whip handed to her by Watts. “Now, let me show you how to use this lovely weapon.” Still holding her shoulder, she moves Cinder back along with her, gripping the hand holding the whip. Hazel guides Cinder’s hand slowly through the motion of raising the whip up, then down, then jerking it back up again. “Give it a shot.”, she whispers. Cinder, fueled by curiosity, begins to bring the whip up, then cracks it down just at the side of Tyriana’s left back side cheek, earning her a delighted squeal of pain. Cinder feels her grip on the whip tighten, a smile slowly spreading on her lips. The sound of the whip crack, the squeal of Tyriana, the faint scent of arousal in the air, it was all too delightful. This sadistic feeling was the same as when she released all her pent up anger, except now she’s in the moment; she can feel the goosebumps on her skin, the adrenaline in her bloodstream feeding her every sense. For the first time in what felt like a long time, Cinder finally feels as if she’s escaped the shadow of her past. Hazel smiles, a rare thing for her to do, and whispers into Cinder’s ear once more to stoke the flames of her passion even further.

“Whip as much as you wish. Make her count each one.”

“Amber” was not spoken once during that lesson.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a slower, shorter chapter, but this is just the calm before the storm...


	4. Visitor

The halls echo with the sounds of leather creaking and cracking. From within the small room Cinder calls her own, she practices her skill with a whip on a mannequin she just recently got into a Shibari tie. She much prefers using leather harnesses and cuffs, but it doesn’t hurt to practice a bit of rope tying. Repeatedly, she cracks the tip of the whip across the mannequin’s backside, focusing on making sure her lashes go in specific spots instead of one general area. It’s been five months since she first arrived in this castle; five months of her shell slowly being cracked by the care and teachings of Salem and her court. While she can’t say she fully forgot about the harshness of her past, it’s shadow has slowly shrunk over time, leaving her to bask in the light of her new identity. At the same time, however, Cinder can’t let go of who she was as Ella. No matter how much she delighted in bringing pain during her teachings, there was still that little twinge in her heart that made her feel bad about hurting them at all. She knows better than to feel bad since they all willingly ask for it, save for Watts, but the Ella inside her can’t help it. Her whip cracks become faster as she feels more frustration to her former self. Her arm was getting tired and her accuracy was slacking, but she is getting too angry to care. One of her whip cracks strikes the metal pole supporting the mannequin, causing it to topple over to the floor. She snaps out of her little bout of frustrations and huffs out a heated sigh. She sets her whip on the edge of her bed, about to go pick the mannequin back up, when a familiar voice at the doorway stops her. 

“Having a bit of trouble practicing, dear?”, Salem says, leaning against the doorway. Cinder glances back, poorly hiding the turmoil in her expression. Salem raises one of her eyebrows, curious to this. “What clouds your mind, my sweet?”

Cinder sighs, knowing that she couldn’t keep her frustration hidden much longer. Salem can read her like a book. “It’s just...I kind of hate myself.”, Cinder says while moving to the fallen mannequin. “I’ve been working my ass off to be like Hazel and the others, but every time I use a whip or drip wax or anything like that, I still feel...bad about doing it, and I don’t know why! They consent to it, they like it, they cum from it, so why do I feel bad?!”

As Cinder grips the mannequin, Salem walks up behind her and slides her hands over hers. Cinder feels her cheeks warm at Salem’s touch, like it always does. Salem smiles as she helps Cinder lift the mannequin back up to its nonexistent feet. With that done, Salem spins Cinder around by her hands, meeting her amber eyes with her own scarlet ones. “Cinder,” she says, “Your heart is nothing to be ashamed of. If anything, I’m happy you still hold onto that human decency. Your kindness is a strength; one that will allow you to drink from the cup of pleasure many, many times. You just need to meet someone new to prove that. In fact, it’s why I’ve come here.

“I’m sure you remember that you’ll be running your own branch of my castle in Vale, right?” Cinder nods. “Well, I’ve gotten you a partner to work on the place with! They’re in the foyer right now.” Cinder looks surprised at Salem; a new person in the castle? She’s already gotten used to her new family; She isn’t sure if she can even bring herself to meet a new person. Salem, once again reading Cinder’s emotions, rubs the pads of her thumbs over Cinder’s hands gently, smiling softly at her. “Don’t worry, my dear. You will do great, trust me.” Cinder slowly inhales through her nose, clearing her head. If Salem believes in her, then she’ll do her best to make her proud. Seeing that determined glare flare up again in Cinder’s eyes gives Salem the affirmation she needs as she releases Cinder’s hands. “Go ahead and get dressed. I’ll meet you in the foyer.” As Salem leaves, Cinder digs around in the chest at the foot of her bed. Watts had gotten her some new clothes from the kingdoms for when she will have to leave, but she wasn’t sure about wearing them after being naked for so long. It’s a red dress that shows off her bare shoulders, zipping up at the back and two straps going up from the front and around her neck. She doesn’t bother with shoes and just heads out of the room as is. As she walks down the halls and steps down the stairs to the foyer, she spots Salem talking to this new person. 

With Salem’s back to the stairs, Cinder has a clear view of the new woman. A white cloak draped over her shoulders, deep red lining its inside. A black corset matched with a black skirt, creating a small window of skin in between the corset and the cloak. The bangs of her hair are tied back into a small ponytail while her bangs cover her forehead and the rest of her hair hangs just above her shoulders, its slightly red tips contrasting against her cloak. As Cinder descends down the stairs further, she realizes this new girl has silver eyes, an odd color for eyes to Cinder. These eyes shift from Salem to Cinder as she moves off the last step. Salem, noticing the shift in attention, turns around and smiles as she sees Cinder. “Ah, perfect!”, Salem says as she moves over to lead Cinder closer to the woman. “This is the new initiate I was talking about, Cinder. Cinder, this is Summer Rose.” 

Summer smiles, nodding politely to Cinder as she approaches. Salem steps to the side, allowing Cinder to get a better look at this new guest. Despite Summer’s haircut, Cinder can see slight creases in her skin, most likely from either age or stress. Those silver eyes also examine Cinder, just as her eyes examine their owner. “Cinder,” Salem chimes in, “would you like to take Summer here to one of our guest rooms?” 

Cinder turns to Salem and bows her head, replying with a swift “Yes, My Queen.” before extending a hand to Summer. Summer, being the taller of the two, nods and takes Cinder’s hand, allowing her to lead the way through the castle. 

While Cinder appears calm, she feels nothing but dread. This is the first time she’s ever really interacted with a new person in a very long time, let alone while being Cinder instead of Ella. She doesn’t even know where to start. To circumvent her lack of conversation topics, she plans to go to one of the guest rooms on the top floor in order to buy herself time. Hopefully, Summer here can be entertained with the empty spots on the wall and not try to-”Ah, are you alright?”

Fuck.

Summer hastens her walk, still holding onto Cinder’s hand as she gets to her side. “I’m sorry if I’m coming off as forward,” she asks to the hidden side of Cinder’s face, “but I can feel your heartbeat through your hand. You seem nervous.” Cinder doesn’t know what to say. She can’t have her guest being worried about her; she needs to look strong for them!

“I’m fine.”

“Are you sure? Salem’s told me about how you’re new here.”

“I am.”, She says back. “What of it?”

“Well, I just want to make sure that you’ve been...alright here.”

Cinder stops walking, feeling her eyebrows furrow in surprise. “What do you mean by that?”

Summer holds her hand up in defense. “Oh, don’t worry! I’m not here to hurt anyone, if I don’t have to. I just need to know that-”

“Why would you have to?” Cinder pulls her hand away from Summer’s grasp, looking at her with skepticism in her eyes. “How did you even come here, anyways? A shipwreck? Or did you come here willingly?”

Summer steps back, surprised by how viciously this young woman is biting back. “Willingly; in fact, it was Salem herself that invited me here.” This is news to Cinder; Salem leaves the castle? No, that can’t be right. She would’ve known if she did, she was informed every time Watts left the castle in the past. Summer continues, slowly approaching Cinder. “Please, I mean no harm to you. I am just here to make sure that what Salem says is true. Tell me, how does she treat you? Are you being fed? Tended to? You’re quite young to be in a place like this.”

Cinder tenses a bit at Summer’s touch to her shoulder. She can’t believe what she’s hearing; how can someone who was invited to this castle think poorly of its Queen? Then again, anyone on the outside would think poorly of Salem because of her appearance. The outside world is full of monsters worse than the Grimm here, that fact is absolute in Cinder’s mind. Salem saves the people who suffer in it like herself, so of course a monster from it would hate her. Her expression hardens, much to Summer’s disappointment. “I can assure you, Summer,” she spits out coldly, “that I am just fine here. I do not need your help, or your pity. You are our guest, and as long as you are, I will not have you tarnish our Queen’s name!”

For as angry as Cinder feels, she can’t help but also feel saddened by her actions. She doesn’t want to be treating one of Salem’s guests like this...but that’s the Ella in her talking. Ella is dead. Cinder is in control now. She stares Summer down, expecting her to bite back, but something peculiar happens; Summer sighs in relief. “I see…”, she murmurs. “From what I could tell about your reaction, it’s at least not a kidnapping situation.” Cinder gasps in shock. Kidnapped? The nerve of this woman! Summer continues regardless; “I apologise for my prodding. I’m sure you can understand why a Huntress like myself would be...skeptical of Salem, wouldn’t you?” For as much as Cinder wishes it wasn’t the case, she does and nods to Summer in agreement. Summer smiles. “Then it seems I can keep my faith in Salem’s words for now. Again, I apologize for my bluntness. Please, continue.”, she says as she extends her hand once more. Cinder, feeling the tension leave the air slowly, sighs and takes Summer’s hand again while mumbling an apology in return. She still feels distrust towards this woman, but she will not act on it yet. She’s been taught to at least be considerate of others options, but she didn’t think that would apply anywhere outside the bedroom. 

\---------------------------------------------------------

The kettle’s whistle cuts the awkward silence filling the lounge room. Cinder turns off the imported Atleasian stovetop and lifts the steaming kettle onto a tray with its matching two cups. Lifting the tray as a whole, she brings it to the table Summer is seated at and pours tea for them both. Summer murmurs out a polite thanks as Cinder sits down, both taking their own collective cups into their hands. The pleasant scent of camomile fills the room as Summer is the first to speak. “I’m surprised you have access to a stove here.”, she comments. “This place seems so...rustic.”

Cinder takes a sip of her tea, trying to relax herself in preparation for a conversation. “Watts brings stuff like that to the castle. Appliances, clothes, things to keep us entertained, stuff like that.”

“Ah, I see. I take it she brought you that nice dress?” Cinder nods silently. “Interesting. Do you have television here?” Cinder shakes her head. “Hm. You must not know a lot about the kingdoms now…”

Cinder glares at Summer, brushing her hair behind her ear. “Should I know something?”

“Not exactly.”, Summer quickly retorts. “Just curious about your living conditions, that’s all. I wish I could get rid of my TV, but my children would scream my head off.”

Cinder’s eyes go wide in surprise. “Y-Your children can scream heads off?!”

Summer nearly spits out her tea, gulping it down quickly as she starts to laugh. “No! No no no, of course not!” Cinder stares with a confused expression as Summer sets her tea cup down to reach for her belt. She retrieves a device Cinder had seen Watts use from time to time; a Scroll, if she recalls. Summer pushes the yellow button, letting the small white brick open up to expose the blue screen. She taps on the screen a few times to fill it with a picture of herself with two children, then turns the screen around to show Cinder. “Do these adorable little ones look like they could scream a person’s head off?”

Cinder stares at the picture, seeing the smiling faces of the two little girls being hugged by Summer. A faint twinge of jealousy dawns on her the more she looks at it, specifically the smile on the dark haired girl; If only she could’ve been the one in that family…”They...They look very happy.”

Summer smiles, closing her scroll. “Don’t they? I love them with all my heart…”

“...Yes. I can see that.”

Summer notices the resentful look Cinder has at her cup of tea. Feeling a bit guilty for bragging about her children, takes another sip of her own cup. “My apologies, let’s change the subject. How long have you been here?”

Cinder, finishing a sip, sighs as she tries to push her jealousy away for now. “About five months, now.”

“I see, and how did you get here?”

“Shipwreck.”

“Ah, that’s right. I remember you mentioning that in the hallway. You wouldn't have happened to have traveled with a Huntress, have you?”

Cinder’s eyes narrow. “And what if I did?”

Summer opens her scroll once more, tapping an app that shows a case file on that very same Huntress. “Because I might know them. We used to be classmates. She went on an expedition to this very island, and while most of her crew came back, she didn’t. Is she in this castle?”

“She’s dead.”, Cinder responds coldly. Her care towards that Huntress has long since evaporated. Summer sets her tea cup down, holding her chin with her index finger. 

“I see...She didn’t survive the crash?” Cinder shakes her head. Summer closes her eyes for a moment, the silence of the room taking hold once more. “When those crewmates came back, they had no memory of this castle. They told us that they were sinking on the ship and an airship picked them up. The only problem is the days they’ve been done and the days it took for them to come back in their story doesn’t match up. Would you know anything about that?”

Cinder shakes her head again. “They left the moment all of them were fit and able to with Watts. I stayed.” Summer nods, lurching forward in her chair to lean on her knees. Her hands interlock under her chin as she stares down at her cup. Cinder can only guess that Summer is processing this information. 

“Cinder, can I ask you something?” She looks up at Cinder, who straightens her back in response. 

“What is it?”

“What do you think of Salem?” Cinder keeps her glare focused on Summer, yet they softened at the mention of Salem. It takes her a moment to collect her thoughts, bringing silence once more. 

“...Salem is everything to me.”, she begins. “She has given me everything I never had; love, security, a purpose, and a new life I can enjoy. I would be nothing without her, and I say that with all of my heart.” Summer sits up, keeping her fingers tied together. 

“I see...How would you feel if you knew that people thought Salem was evil?”

Cinder is quick to bite back at the question, her feelings toward Salem being spurred. “I wouldn’t be surprised. As far as I care, Salem is the only sane woman in a world of monsters.” Summer’s eyebrows go up in shock, something Cinder takes note of. She expects Summer to blow up at her, but much like Salem has before, she keeps calm and responds in a softer tone. 

“Does Salem share this view with you?” Cinder looks to the side, feeling a sense of shame take hold of her. She knows Salem would’ve tried to calm her down, much like she did this morning. She sighs before answering Summer.

“N-No. In fact, she would most likely disagree with me.”, she speaks in a low tone. Summer nods.

“Alright...Do you mind telling me about your experiences here?” This takes Cinder aback for a moment. She isn’t sure if she should be completely honest about it; Summer seems understanding, but she keeps questioning Salem. Well, if she asks for it, she supposes she’ll get what she wants.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------

“...Oh.”

Summer’s face has become as red as the inside of her cloak. Cinder is beginning to regret sharing so much about her training. “Are...you feeling okay?” She asks Summer shyly. 

Summer quickly waves her hands from side to side, as if trying to physically wave the awkwardness away from the room. “I-I’m fine! I’m just...shocked, that’s all. I didn’t think someone as young as you would be practicing...you know.”

Cinder cocks an eyebrow up in confusion. “You...think I’m a child?”

“J-Just compared to me!” Summer quickly retorts. “I’m a mother closing in on my mid 40’s, so I feel older than everyone else sometimes.” This only makes Cinder look more confused, but Summer quickly clears her throat. “My point is that you’ve been practicing something that is very...frowned upon in most of society.” Cinder scoffs, thinking back to her previous ideals on society. “It’s a very ambitious idea, one that I’m not sure would work. Then again, I only have a piece of a much larger puzzle.”

“What are you trying to say, Summer…?” Cinder interjects, unsure of where this conversation is going. 

“What I’m saying is that I want to know more about this plan.”, Summer says, finishing her now much cooler cup of tea. “Once I feel I have enough information, I’ll decide if I should join or not.” This is a surprise to Cinder; Summer had never shown interest in joining them thus far, and now she’s interested? Why, and what does that have to do with her? “So,” Summer interrupts her thoughts, “I would like for you to demonstrate your goals for me. Prove to me this is about uniting humanity.” 

“And...how do you want me to do that?”

“I feel like that’s obvious to you, Cinder...Try to seduce me.”

This revelation takes the cake for Cinder. After all this questioning and judgement, now Summer wants to be seduced? There has to be something else to it. She sits there in disbelief for a moment, but looking at Summer’s smile makes her realize it was a serious request. With a deep breath, Cinder nods and stands from her seat. She moves over to Summer’s seat, making sure her hips sway as much as they could with the limited steps she has. She stands in front of Summer, looking down at her before slowly kneeling on the sides of her seat, straddling Summer’s lap. Her eyes meet Summer’s as her hand reaches to tilt the older woman’s chin upwards. Her other hand caresses Summer’s cheek, brushing her hair back to the side while she stares into her silver irises. Cinder has never seen such a color, it’s almost alien to her; There’s a mystical gleam to them that gives her slightly aged face a more youthful glow. Cinder then tilts her head, leaning in slowly to press her lips against the mothers. As they connect, Cinder keeps her kiss gentle to allow Summer to influence how the kiss goes from here. To her surprise, Summer begins kissing back, as if to silently give Cinder permission to continue, and so she does. Cinder takes charge of the kiss, gradually pressing more and more of her body against Summer’s own; her lips part to let her tongue slip through Summer’s, allowing for this closeness to take place.

However, the more she presses the kiss on by exploring Summer’s mouth, the more she feels a twinge of regret inside of her. Her eyes open to glance at the closed Scroll device, thinking back to the picture of those children. They looked so happy in that photo, something she never really knew as a child herself. How would they feel if they saw her mother with another woman? Would they understand? Would their father figure understand? It shouldn’t matter to Cinder, but it does. She shuts her eyes, trying to focus back on pressing the kiss. Despite her best efforts to keep her tongue moving, her mind keeps drifting that to the picture. The woman she’s kissing has love for someone else; so much so that they’ve made a family. How can Cinder come between that? No, not Cinder. Ella. Cinder feels her eyebrows scrunch up in frustration. She needs to convince Summer that Salem isn’t evil, and this kiss is how she’ll do it, family be damned! As her frustration grows, however, she remembers Salem’s words from earlier. 

“Your heart is nothing to be ashamed of.”

As she parts from the kiss, she turns away from Summer and shuts her eyes in shame. “I-I’m sorry. I...I can’t do this to you.”, she mutters out as she catches her breath. She starts to move off of Summer’s lap, but Summer’s hand stops her with a grip to her shoulder. Cinder, confused, turns back to see Summer smiling at her, even more than before. “Why are you smiling…?”

Summer takes a moment to wipe her lip before answering. “You gave me exactly what I was looking for. Now, I have my answer. Now, do you mind getting off of me? I need to go see Salem.”

Cinder blushes a bit and gets off with haste. As she watches Summer stand, she continues to ponder what Summer is going to do. This confusion ends up making her follow after Summer all the way to the throne room, which Summer somehow already knows the way to...This only confuses Cinder more. Once there, Summer quickly steps up in front of Salem in her throne. Salem looks up with intrigue. 

“Ah, Summer! I trust Cinder has been a good host?”

“She has. In fact, she’s helped me reach a decision.”

“Has she now?” Salem glances at Cinder, her eyes showing a bit of pride. “So then, what’s the verdict?”

Summer takes a deep breath, as if she was nervous about her own choice. Yet, in her eyes, Cinder sees only courage. “I feel you already know that. I want to help you with your goal.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope I didn't keep you all waiting too long for this long. I've had chapters 1 and 2 pre-written before publishing them and Chapter 3 was, as you've most likely seen, a lot shorter, so this one took a lot more time. Either way, it's here now, so I hope you all enjoy!


	5. Redemption

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait; I ended up taking an impromptu hiatus because of Thanksgiving. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

_I remember that day all too well. I knew it was a death wish, but I was too desperate to consider my own safety anymore. What I had learned, what we all had learned caused that rift between us to grow, and all I wanted was for it to close. They tried to stop me, but my mind was made up.  
I would kill Salem by the night's end.  
The moment I set foot on that cursed land, there was no going back. Creatures of nightmares born from the blackest womb lunged for the turmoil in my soul, like moths drawn to a flame. With blade and bullet, I tore my way through these forces, killing one beast after the other so I may finally dispel the dark cloud hanging over humanity. I dared not to shine my light, saving it for the real challenge lying in the castle ahead. I can’t remember how many I killed; could be hundreds, could be thousands. It didn’t matter, for they had millions. My body was screaming in pain and exhaustion, but I ignored its cries; my heart was telling me to press on for the sake of my friends, my children, and for the entire world. However, with the beasts continuing their assault and my Aura only going so far, I began to risk it all. Bones breaking, flesh tearing, blood being spit out with every breath, I pressed on as far as I could before my body finally gave way. Before I felt the weight of unconsciousness destroy my will, I called upon my divine gift and let the light of my gaze bathe the land and hopefully reach the dark queen… ___

__As Summer’s story ends, she sighs and looks back to Cinder with a tired smile. That story always has a habit of exhausting her emotionally. “Before now, I had no idea how I managed to wake up back on Anima with all of my body restored, but luckily Salem gave me that answer when I arrived yesterday. I was taken to her castle by her subjects, healed with her magic, and was whisked away to safety at the hands of a Grimm she’s constructed. I believe it’s name is The Hound? I’m not sure. Either way, I have Salem to thank for bringing me back to my home and children. Ironic, considering I went there to kill her.”_ _

__Cinder leans back in her seat, taking a moment to absorb the story she’s been told. Cinder didn’t have any idea how skilled a Huntress Summer truly was until now; being able to last outside of the castle with all of those Grimm is a feat in and of itself. Even if her intention at the time was to kill her Queen, Cinder respects Summer’s strength. However, there’s one thing Cinder doesn’t understand about this story. “How did you know about Salem in the first place?”_ _

__Summer sighs, moving over to sit next to Cinder. Cinder can see the tiredness in her eyes, feeling a bit of remorse for having to ask this of Summer. “Well...I don’t know how, but Ozpin knows about Salem existing at all, and she told us that she’s plotting on the destruction of the world. I don’t know why she did or how she knows Salem, but when my team learned about this, it...well, split us apart. Some of us wanted to stay as Huntswomen, while others...forged their own path, so to speak. I thought if I killed Salem somehow, I could bring us all together again, but...Well, now I’m about to be her newest initiate._ _

__“Speaking of,” she says while standing up, “I believe we’ve kept them waiting long enough, haven’t we?” Cinder stands as well, rolling her shoulders a bit._ _

__“Not at all. I would know if they were ready for us.”, Cinder comments. “Though, I suppose we can make this easier for you and give you an idea for what you’re in for.” Summer shrugs a bit and nods, leaning against the wall. “Alright...well, when I first became an initiate, I was chained to the ceiling by my wrists, stripped, had a tattoo placed onto me, and then I was fucked for...a very long time.”_ _

__Summer’s cheeks flush with red, much to Cinder’s expectations, but then begins to hold her chin with two fingers, pondering something while staring at Cinder. “Hm...A tattoo? Where?” Cinder, shrugging to herself, reaches down to lift up her skirt and show that not only is she going commando, but also the mark placed on her pelvis. The red wheel contains a vertical eye and three diamond shapes at the bottom. Summer blushes for a moment, but then leans down a bit to get a closer look at the symbol itself. “Oh my, that’s quite...unique.” Summer tries to avoid calling everything evil here, which Cinder appreciates. “So, is this just for decoration?”_ _

__“Actually, no.”, Cinder comments. “For one thing, it disables the uterus so we can’t get pregnant.”_ _

__“I already did that, and I didn’t need a magic symbol.”_ _

__“...You can do that?”_ _

__“I’ll tell you more about it later. What else can it do?”_ _

__“Salem can trigger it into making our loins go into overdrive. We become twice as aroused and are blessed with even more stamina than normal.”_ _

__“Oh! Well, that certainly sounds...useful…”_ _

__“It is, and leads to many, many hours of fun…” Cinder smirks, deciding to tease Summer a bit. It certainly works, much to Cinder’s delight._ _

__“Oh my...Ahem! A-Anything else?”_ _

__“Well, how did Salem tell you to come to this place again?”_ _

__“She came to my house…?”_ _

__“Did she now?”_ _

__“Well, I didn’t get a good look at her; it was nighttime.”_ _

__“Well then...Let me show you what she really did...if she’s not busy.” Cinder then closes her eyes and slowly rubs the symbol. Summer watches as the symbol begins to glow red, the spokes of the wheel slowly spreading across Cinder’s body, like red tendrils making their claim of Cinder’s skin. Soon, two tendrils branch around her cheeks and end just under her eyelids, then all of the tendrils turn black. Cinder’s eyes open as the black of her pupils spreads across her eyeballs, blackening her eyes much to Summer’s shock. Within the darkness, familiar red eyes shine out and look back to Summer. After a low sigh, Cinder smiles at Summer, but as she speaks, her voice sounds much different than before._ _

__“Ah, Mrs. Rose!”, Cinder says in Salem’s voice. The more Summer looks at the black tendrils, the more she realizes they seem to be identical to the black veins on Salem’s own body. “I take it you asked for me?”_ _

__“I..uh…” Summer is still flabbergasted by the sudden change of Cinder’s voice and body. “I...I don’t…” Salem only chuckles at Summer’s confusion._ _

__“I see. You didn’t know about the Mark, so Cinder is showing you the features, yes?” Summer slowly nods her head. “I thought so. It explains the shock all over your face. I suppose I should have explained a bit more about this, considering you’ll be getting a mark of your own.” Salem smirks as she seats herself, crossing her legs. Summer gulps a bit nervously; the more she looks at the taken body, the more butterflies rise in her stomach to her upcoming initiation. Salem takes note of this and leans back into her chair. “Before you ask, Cinder is perfectly fine. She’s currently residing in my body while I reside in hers. I understand this looks terrifying, but it’s harmless. I can’t even do this unless the one with the Mark calls upon me, as I’m sure you’ve seen just now.” Summer relaxes a bit more against the wall, realizing what she’s looking at isn’t as malicious as she initially thought. That doesn’t remove the more unsettling implications of it, however. “So,” Salem continues, “is there anything else you want to ask me while I’m here?”_ _

__Summer taps her chin for a moment, considering all she knows about the initiation. It’s certainly something to be expected from a group all about...intercourse, but her concerns are coming more from what will happen after the initiation. “Well...you mentioned that the four here will be sent to start their own branches of your little kingdom. What I want to know is where I fit in with this scheme.” Salem sits up, taking on a more serious expression._ _

__“Well, that will be up to you.” Summer tilts her head a bit in confusion at this, prompting Salem to continue on. “I know why you came to kill me all those years ago, Summer. I won’t pretend that my existence has been a mistake, because it has for more reasons than you know. However, I would like to remind you that everything up to this point has been your choice; you came here to kill me, then accepted my invitation, and now you’ve asked to join me. I am not making you do this, and if you wish to back out, I can call off the initiation ceremony and send you home. This is all up to you, Summer. I leave it all to your judgement.”_ _

__Silence fills the room as Summer looks down. Salem leans back again, allowing Summer to think through what’s been said. Summer’s been given two conflicting tales of information; on one hand, Ozpin has told her of Salem’s monstrous domain and that very knowledge led to the splitting of her team, yet on the other hand, Salem’s actions and underlings have shown more of a valorant-if odd-approach to their goal. While Salem has been courteous, she’s known Ozpin for a longer time and has little reason to doubt her, and yet Salem isn’t being completely untrustworthy. The more Summer ponders what Salem’s said, the more she realizes there’s something Salem said that confuses her._ _

__“What do you mean by more reasons than I know? What do you know that I don’t?”_ _

__Salem smiles. “Ah, I was wondering when you would ask about that. You might want to sit down, because this tale takes us back all the way back to the beginning of the world.”_ _

__Summer cocks an eyebrow at this. “You mean the tale of the Two Brothers? Ozpin told us about that, too.”_ _

__“I’m sure she did, but did she tell you that she and I have been around during their existence?” Summer’s jaw drops._ _

__“You’re lying!”_ _

__“I am not. And I can prove it. You see, back far before the moon shattered, there was a woman trapped in a tower..._ _

__\-------------------------------------------_ _

__“...and well, the rest is history.”_ _

__Salem stops at a set of large oak doors, allowing Summer a chance to process the story she has told. Summer sighs a bit, crossing her arms as she tries to make a summative statement. “So...You tried to trick the Gods into bringing Ozpin back, they punished you with immortality, you tried to get revenge and ended up getting everyone killed, dived into a Grimm pool, Ozma became Ozpin, you two ruled early Remnant, then you two got into a fight over each other’s goals, and now you’re here?”_ _

__“...I am surprised you remembered most of that.”_ _

__“It’s difficult to forget such a fantastical story like that. But how can I be sure this is all true?”_ _

__“The tale of the Maidens is true, is it not?”_ _

__“W-Well, yes, but I’ve seen a Maiden in action before.”_ _

__With that, Salem stands up, loosening the shoulders of Cinder’s body before breathing in slowly. Inside her, a familiar spark begins to grow into a bright light, its energy burning through this body with vigor. Salem extends her hands outwards, allowing the latent power to surge forth into four orbs of elemental magic: one of fire, one of ice, one of lightning, and one of wind. The orbs spin around over Salem’s palms, spinning faster and faster until they combine into one large orb of pure light. Summer gasps, feeling her eyes resonate with this strange energy, as if it’s a bigger part of a grander source. Slowly, Salem allows the light to sink back into her body, returning it to her soul. “Is that enough proof for you, Summer?”_ _

__Summer looks down, realizing she has seen this kind of magical display before; Ozpin had done it along with the Maidens in order to grant Qrowe and Raven their own magical ability. Seeing Salem do it all by herself gives her story more merit than Summer has initially given her. Perhaps trusting Salem isn’t as much of a bad idea as she thought it was. Yet, something still bothered her about all of this. “Okay...but if you are trying to do something good to make up for the past, then why not work with Ozpin? Why stay out here in this place? It’s been over a century since you two fought, so surely if you-”_ _

__“Summer,” Salem interrupts, “if I wanted to work with Ozma, I would be right now. I’ve tried, believe me, to come to her in peace, and yet she still didn’t trust me. Before I came up with the idea of this Mark and this group, I apologized to her over and over again to no avail. I need to show that I am doing good. I need proof of my intentions. That is where these branches come in, where you come in. If I can make a big enough following through peace and choice, then that will surely sway her mind. So, I ask you again, Summer Rose.”, she says while offering her hand to Summer. “Do you trust me?”_ _

__\------------------------------------_ _

__Cinder breathes in deeply as she walks, still feeling a strange tingle to her body after having her soul come back inside of it. Summer follows close behind her as she descends down the stairs towards the initiation room. As they reach the door, Cinder stops before opening it, turning back to Summer. “You’ve been awfully quiet. Are you sure you’re up for this?”_ _

__Summer starts to smile, but then stops, as if she just came to terms with something. “I’ll be honest, I’m nervous. I mean, not only am I joining someone people in power consider to be an enemy, but it’s also something much more...kinky than the few times I’ve done it.”_ _

__Cinder sighs as she grips the door’s large handle. “Yeah...I was nervous during my initiation, too. The girls supported me through it all, if that helps. Once you get past the first few parts, the rest is smooth sailing.”_ _

__“I’ll take your word on it. Let’s not keep them waiting, shall we?”, Summer says while motioning towards the door. With a nod, Cinder turns and opens the large door, revealing the initiation room. Summer walks in, taking a deep breath as she steps up to the platform in the center with Cinder following closely behind. Just as Cinder remembers, Tyriana is the first to arrive with the pair of fuzzy handcuffs. Much to her surprise, Summer is willing to be handcuffed to the chain above her head, taking off the black vambraces on her wrists to make it easier. Even if Summer is putting up a brave face, Cinder can see the goosebumps prickling her skin. Wanting to help somehow, she rubs Summer’s back in a timid fashion, much to Summer’s surprise. She smiles at Cinder in appreciation, making Cinder blush. Next comes Watts with the bowl of wine, which makes Summer cough afterwards. “I-I’m fine!”, she says to Watts, “I’m not much of an alcohol person, that’s all.” Watts simply shrugs and walks to the side, muttering something about light weights. Cinder doesn’t get it._ _

__Next is Salem, who gently brushes Summer’s hair behind her ears before leaning in for a kiss. She reaches back to pull Summer’s hair out of it’s small bun, letting it become disheveled as the kiss goes on. Cinder realizes just how arousing it is to be the one watching an initiation, wondering how the others kept from masturbating the whole time she was having her own. Salem parts from Summer’s lips, a small connection of saliva disappearing in the candlelight as the two stare into each other’s eyes. Salem smirks before moving to undo Summer’s clothes, starting with the long white cloak. As more and more of Summer’s outfit is peeled off, Cinder is surprised to see just how toned Summer’s body is underneath; a few faint scars accentuate her chiseled stomach and arms, showing the results of years being a Huntress. Yet for as much as Summer is built, there is a softness to her curves, especially her breasts. They almost seem like pillows from how they gently rise and fall with each of Summer’s slowing breaths. Salem lightly kisses her way down Summer’s body, taking extra time to leave a trail of licks around each abdominal muscle. Cinder looks down at her own stomach, feeling envious of Summer. As Salem traces the red light on her finger to create the Mark, she also looks to Cinder with glowing eyes. Tyriana suddenly gasps and begins to clap, much to Cinder and Summer’s confusion._ _

__Cinder then drops to her knees, gasping out as a sudden surge of pain rises from her crotch. She looks down, seeing her Mark glowing brightly from under her skirt. Cupping her nethers, she doubles over as a groan slips past her lips. She can hear Summer questioning frantically about her safety, but all other noise becomes muffled as Salem speaks to her, as if through a mental link. “Do not be afraid,” she says, “this is merely another power the Mark grants you. Be strong, my dear Cinder. The pain will pass shortly.” Despite the soothing tone of Salem’s voice, it didn’t make the pain much easier to deal with. Cinder sucks in air sharply through her teeth as she begins to feel her clitorous throbbing under her dress. Her eyes then widen as the pain is replaced by an overwhelming sense of pleasure. She looks down between her legs to see the silhouette of a phallic object growing under her skirt. With a gasp, she realizes why her clit was feeling so pained at first; the Mark is transforming it into a cock. She groans as she can feel it throb, it’s transformation nearly complete. The hood of her clit begins to stretch itself and swell into two mounds just below her new cock. Cinder remains hunched over for a while, feeling the cool air of the room send shivers of pleasure down her new phallise._ _

__“Cinder…” Salem’s voice coos to Cinder, rousing her from her haze. She pushes herself back up to her knees, looking up to see Salem spreading apart Summer’s lower cheeks. Cinder blushes, staring at the moist cove nestled between Summer’s legs, feeling her girth throb at it’s sight. “You’ll be ending the initiation tonight. Go ahead and treat yourself.”, Salem says with a smirk. Cinder, gulping in anticipation, gets back on her feet and walks up behind Summer. Her new length can feel the heat coming from Summer’s nethers, making her shudder in anticipation. As excited as she is, she catches a glimpse of Hazel near the corner of the room. Quickly remembering her training, she wraps her arms around Summer’s body, holding her close before shakily whispering in her ear;_ _

__“D-Do you want me to do this?”_ _

__Summer nods, without any hesitation._ _

__As Cinder lines up, she finds it surprising how natural it feels. Seems all of the strap-on training was good for more than she thought. With a deep breath, Cinder thrusts her hips to plunge into Summer’s depths, making the Huntress moan in surprise. Cinder gasps, tightening her grip on Summer as she gets lost in the feeling of her insides; Cinder swears she can feel every inch of her girth being squeezed and enveloped in warmth, sending waves of pleasure throughout her body. She tries to remember to set a rhythm for her thrusts, but the feeling is too overwhelming, clouding her mind as she haphazardly thrusts away at Summer’s pussy, keeping as much of her length buried in as she can. Salem steps back and watches as Cinder hurriedly pounds Summer like a wolf in heat, enjoying the sight of Summer’s ass rippling with each thrust. Cinder buries her face into Summer’s hair, breathing in it’s strawberry scent while gripping onto Summer’s breast as if it were a handlebar to support her shaky legs. She leans herself as far as the chain supporting Summer will allow, moaning into the back of her neck. Summer’s own moans echo around the room as she reaches her legs back around to wrap around Cinder’s waist, surprising the other members with her display of flexibility. Cinder can feel her new length throbbing more as she goes, making her grit her teeth. She has an idea as to what this feeling is, but doesn’t want it to go through just yet. This Summer’s initiation, not her own fun time. She pulls herself out of Summer’s hair, gasping for a moment before saying; “I-I’m about to-”_ _

__“Do it!”, Summer interjects. “Give it to me! Give it ALL to me!”_ _

__With those heated words, Cinder thrusts in one last time and feels herself erupt into Summer’s depths with a screaming moan. Summer shakes in Cinder’s grip as her own orgasm arrives, tightening her love tunnel around Cinder’s cock, milking it for every rope of thick seed it has. The two ride this wave for what feels like minutes before relaxing against each other’s bodies and meeting for a tired kiss. However, a glowing eye’d glare from Salem makes both of their loins spurr with vivor, turning the kiss into a heated makeout session before Cinder begins thrusting away once more. Salem chuckles at her handiwork._ _

__\--------------------------------------------_ _

__“So, how are they?”_ _

__“Tucked into bed lovingly, as you requested!”_ _

__“Very good. I still can’t believe one of Ozma’s students came here.”_ _

__“It is a very delightful surprise, indeed!”_ _

__“My Queen, with all due respect, how do we know she isn’t a spy?”_ _

__“I am positive now. She has the Mark, so I can see into her soul. Her intentions are as pure as milk. Such a simple soul she is, too...it’s a shame my mistakes have caused her such tragedy.”_ _

__“I wouldn’t blame yourself. If anything, that fool Ozpin is to blame. All she knows is to lie and deceive…”_ _

__“Now now Hazel, we’ve discussed this.”_ _

__“Still, we didn’t plan on having five members. What will we do with Ms. Rose?”_ _

__“She will accompany Cinder to Vale. Someone much more learned in the kingdom will be a great asset to her, both in her work and in her social life. Speaking of, did you get the information I asked for, Watts?”_ _

__“Right here. A club in Vale with a more...adult branch in another part of the main city. Right next to an abandoned apartment complex which I have managed to get the deed for.”_ _

__“Excellent. Have the deed signed in Cinder’s name. Now, tell me about this ‘adult branch’.”_ _

__“Not much else to say either than it’s a strip club. Run by someone named...Romania Torchwick.”_ _


	6. Houseguest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is gonna be a more calm chapter, not a lot of smut here. Don't you worry, however, because the next chapter will have that in full! Either way, I hope you enjoy!

_Alright everyone, today is the day. The ship is prepared to drop you all off at your locations. First will be Summer and Cinder in Patch, next is Hazel in Mistral, then Tyriana in Vacuo, and finally, Watts in Atlas. Summer, I ask that you invite Cinder as a guest to your house for a few days. Take some time to reintroduce her to society and help her adjust to life outside of the castle. When you both are ready, head to the address Watts has sent to your scrolls and we’ll continue from there._

\------------------------------------------

A symphony of bird songs plays through the trees; the sun shines brightly down upon the small island town, the smell of the saltwater sea filling the air. People bustle through the square, visiting vendors and meeting with each other. Little girls dance and play around the fountain in the square’s center. Fishers wheel over wagons full of fish from the day’s catches. Budding couples sit with each other on the benches. The island of Patch is full of warmth, wonder, and happy people.

And Cinder is not liking any of it.

Summer giggles as Cinder keeps pressing herself to her arm, looking like a worried child. The quiet bleakness of the castle is much more enjoyable to her than all of this brightness and populace. Summer pats her head as the two walk towards the path leading into the forest. “Don’t worry, Cinder. We’ll be in my home within a few moments.” The little bit of assurance does make Cinder less clingy, but she also speeds up her walking. As the two make their way out of the square and onto the path, Cinder starts to look around at the wilderness surrounding them. The sounds of the square fade out the deeper they go, leaving only the gentle rustles of leaves and the songs of birds. The black haired maiden releases Summer’s arm, beginning to enjoy the ambience of the forest. She closes her eyes for a moment, breathing deeply of the fresh air through her nose, catching the smell of the sea with it. It’s almost like the smell of rain, only...saltier. Cinder fondly remembers small moments in her childhood where she would sit up at night with her window open, enjoying the sounds and smells of the rain. Within her chaotic life, those nights were a quiet reprieve for her bruised spirit. Cinder feels herself smile at this memory, realizing that her past still has small gems within it’s bleakness. 

After a couple minutes of walking, the two find themselves approaching a two-story log cabin. On its side is a garage storing a simple hovering car, much less extravagant compared to the truck she would see the Huntress drive a long time ago. A planter’s box full of sunflowers rests below a window right next to the front door, which is currently being violently swung open by a large swarm of rose petals barreling towards Summer. Cinder, fearful for her life, jumps out of the way of the screeching cloud of red as it tackles Summer to the ground. “You’re back!!”, a voice behind Cinder’s cowering figure says. She hears Summer chuckle just as another voice rings out from the front door.

“Easy there, sis! Ya don’t wanna break the old lady!”

Cinder slowly gets back up to her knees as she realizes there’s no danger. She looks over to the door and spots the one who just spoke; a young woman with burning gold hair and a bright smile, clothed in a gray jacket with matching cargo pants and a yellow tube top that accentuates her chest. On this top is a black symbol resembling some kind of fire. She looks over to Summer, checking out the red-cloaked girl giggling on top of her. Summer gets up, easily carrying the red girl up with her. “Oh ha ha.”, she says with a sarcastic tone as she sets the red girl down on her feet. The blonde girl walks up and hugs Summer, who happily hugs back.

“Welcome back, Aunty.”

“Glad to be back, hun.” The girl in red eagerly walks up to her mother. 

“Did you bring me anything?! Did you kill any monsters!? And who’s the scary lady on the grou-OW!” The blonde lets go of the hug to elbow the red girl in the arm. Summer chuckles. 

“No, no, and this is Cinder. Cinder, this is my daughter, Ruby…” Summer playfully ruffles Ruby’s hair, making the girl giggle. “And this is my niece, Yang.” Yang flashes a peace sign to Cinder, who thinks of it as a much different gesture. No tongue movement with it, however, which confuses Cinder as she stands up. Summer puts her hands on both of their heads, turning them to look at her. “She’ll be our guest for a few days. I want you both to be on your best behaviour around her, understood?” The two nod eagerly and Summer lets the two go, letting them run back in the house.

Cinder walks over to Summer, watching the two run. “I thought you had children…”

“Ah, Yang is a bit of a...complicated story. I’ll explain inside. Come on in!”

\------------------------------

The eyes...they are unrelenting.

Cinder sits up straight on the couch, looking at the program playing on the television. A lot of explosions go off behind a group of teenagers in colorful outfits. Cinder, however, isn’t really paying much attention to the program. She’s distracted by the smaller version of Summer right next to her, staring at her intently. She does her best to not seem rude, she is a guest after all, but the air is slowly filling with tension, and not the fun kind. After what feels like an eternity, Ruby suddenly perks up. “Ohhhh!! NOW I know why you look familiar!”

“I-What?! You think I look familiar?”

“Yeah! You look JUST like Countess Chaos!”

“Countess...Chaos…?”

“Yeah, from the show!” Ruby points to the screen just as the scene changes to a woman in a castle. Cinder hates how much it reminds her of Salem’s home. This character swirls a wine glass in her hand while lounging on a throne, flicking back her white hair seductively. Cinder does see the resemblance, but the outfit is atrocious to her; there’s no way Cinder can wear so many spikes and skulls over a perfectly good belt harness set. It’s ridiculous! As the scene plays out, Ruby continues. “I mean, you don’t have white hair and red eyes, but everything else is a dead ringer! It’s so cool!”

“Oh...so it’s a good thing that I look like her?”

“Yeah! Are you, like, her actor or something? Say one of her lines!”

“I-I’m sorry?”

“You know, something like…” She sits back on the couch, pretending to swirl a glass in her hand while putting on a silly looking evil grin. “‘I’ve been expecting you, X-Ray…’ Like that!” She quickly goes back to her normal, happy expression. Cinder looks confused, but tries to mimic Ruby’s action. 

“I...have been expecting-”

“No no no, say it all evil and stuff! Like, you’re a big, bad boss who knows what she wants and has her underlings do all the work not because she can’t do it herself, but because she loves seeing them struggle; both the heroes and the ones on her side!”

So sadism is what this girl wants? That’s something Cinder can understand. She clears her throat, envisioning herself standing over Tyriana’s writhing body being subjected to hours on a wooden horse rocking back and forth on hydraulic weights. Cinder feels herself smirk devilishly as she looks down at the table, pretending that is Tyriana.

_**“I’ve been expecting you...X-Ray.”** _

She looks over to Ruby, who’s jaw is practically to the floor. “That...was AWESOME!” Ruby beams in delight at Cinder’s performance, making the latter blush slightly. Seems her skills in the bedroom had use for the younger crowd after all.

\-----------------------------

“And then...WHAM! Giant Ursa Major from out of nowhere!”

“My goodness!”

“Yeah, it was insane! So of course I try to take out it’s legs, but it wouldn’t budge. It swats me away, sending me crashing through a shit ton of trees! When I get back up, I see it making a B-line for Ruby, so I blast off with my gauntlets and get caught in it’s mouth!”

“Oh no! You didn’t get hurt, did you?”

“Nah. But the Ursa? He got DESTROYED. He flings me away, I turn my Semblance on, blast back at him, and punch at his claw! He starts to resist, but that bite made me all too strong! I managed to kill the bastard in one huge hit!”

“Wow! Wait...what’s a Semblance?”

“Huh? Do you really not know about Semblances?”

“I...believe I might. Is it like a strange ability? Like magic?”

“Well, kinda. Except magic isn’t real. Semblances come from a person’s Aura and their personality. For a blonde bombshell with a thirst for danger and adventure like myself, it’s only natural I get one that makes me a total badass on the battlefield! Every time I’m hit, I can take that strength and add it to my own in one huge blast! It’s freakin awesome!”

“I...see...Would a Semblance also make the ground...glass, sometimes?”

“Huh?”

“Just a hypothetical.”

“Well, Semblances can be anything. My sister turns to rose petals, I have that strength thing, and my dad has this thing where he-”

“I’m aware of that. In fact, I know someone who has an ability to not feel pain. I’m asking if the ground turning to glass under your hands is a Semblance.”

“Hmmmmmm….could be. Have you done that before?”

“...Once. And only once.”

“How long was that?”

“About...when I was a child…?”

“Yeesh, seriously? You could’ve had a Semblance this whole time and never known it?! That’s it, we’re getting to the bottom of this!”

“What do you-Ah! Hey, why are you dragging me?!”

“C’mon, Cindy! Time for Semblance 101!”

“My name is Cinder, and how are you this strong?!”

\------------------------------------

“...so let me get this straight. You dragged our new guest into the backyard, ran them around like a drill sergeant, and even tried to **fight** them, just because you think they have a Semblance?”

“You know, when you put it like that, you make it sound even worse.”

“Yang Xiao Long! Cinder is our guest, and this is how you treat her?! That is completely unacceptable! Oh, you are so lucky that you’re too old to be spanked!”

“But Aunty! I saw it! Cinder has a Semblance and it looks awesome! It’s like a-”

“No excuses, young lady! To your room, now!”

“Ugh, fine!”

“My goodness, that girl...I am so so sorry about that, Cinder! Really, I expected better from her!”

“It’s okay, Summer. I let her do it.”

“I know, you didn’t want to be rude, but listen; just because you weren’t brought up in the best household does not mean you have to-”

“You misunderstand. I did it to learn. Thanks to your niece, I’ve realized more things about myself; I do have a Semblance, and I hate being bossed around by children! Isn’t that exciting? I’m really learning about myself and the outside world!”

“I...T-That’s good! I suppose.”

“I do have one question, though; Is there an age limit to being spanked?”

“Ah...when they’re your family, then yes.”

“Hm, I see. So, do you need me to spank her for y-”

“CINDER!”

“What?”

“For the love of the Gods, please don’t fill my head with thoughts of my children partaking in that...that!”

“O-Oh, right. My apologies. That reminds me...Are we going to tell her about your initiation?”

“...I had a feeling you would ask about that. I suppose we can tonight, when the girls are sleeping. I’m just...worried about what she will say.”

“Should I have Salem speak through me?”

“...Maybe. We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, let’s just wait until we’re alone with her.”

“...what bridge?”

“We really need to work on your understanding of certain phrases…”

\---------------------------

The tension in the room thickens between the three. Cinder, being used by Salem, watches over Taiyang’s puzzled expression. Summer looks over at Tai, feeling a sense of worry in the pit of her stomach. After what feels like an eternity, Tai finally speaks. “Okay...so you’re not evil, but you want to make a sex cult.”

“In a...simpler set of words, yes.” For as old as Salem is, she still needs to find the patience to have her goals be lessened to such a degree. 

“Uh huh. Look, I’m sure you have good intentions with this whole plan of yours, but I doubt it’ll do any good against the White Fang or pretty much any other issue out here. You can’t just fuck your problems away.”

“Not every facet of my plan is purely sexual, Mrs. Xiao Long. This is only the first step in a long process of bringing humanity together. You do not have to join us if you do not wish.”

Tai stands, folding her arms over her chest. “Yeah, that’s another part I’m not down with. This whole plan just seems...way too optimistic.” Her brows furrow when she looks back at Summer. Salem can feel a sense of fear inside of Tai, but not for her own safety. “That being said...I know this kind of thing is what Summer wants, and since you’ve actually given us the whole story unlike Ozpin did, I guess I can...look the other way about it. On one condition.”

Salem smirks. “Let me guess; You don’t want Summer to sneak out and sleep with anyone else.” She delights internally at Tai’s blush telling her she hit the nail right on the head. “I thought so. Not to worry, Taiyang. Summer can remain here until you both trust each other a bit more.”

“Wha-I trust her!”

“Her soul tells me otherwise, Tai...In any case, I’ve given you the information you desire. In the morning, Cinder will be heading for Vale. On her behalf, I thank you for your hospitality.” With that, Salem turns away and exits the door. Taiyang sighs, flopping back onto the bed, just as Summer catches a glimpse of a black bird flying into the night sky.

“Summer...be honest with me....Is it too late to tell them the truth?”

“Well, the girls are both older. I’m sure they’ll understand.”

“Not who I was referring to…”

“...I hope not, Tai...I hope not.”


	7. Suave

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed that light chapter, because we're going right back into smut territory! The tale of Cinder's Branch begins!

“So...another boat ride for you, huh?”

“Looks like it. Hopefully this one isn’t attacked by Grimm.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it! Vale waters are usually very tame. You’ll be fine!”

“Oh..speaking of fine, how did the meeting go? You know, with Taiyang?”

“Well...She isn’t going to be joining you guys, and I’ll be staying here. I’ll still be in contact with you, though!”

“I see...Are you two going to be okay?”

“Relax, Cinder. Our relationship is going to be fine. You just focus on running your branch and making people ha-”

“CIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINDEEEEEEER!!”

“Ruby?! Yang?”

“Whew! Glad we caught ya before you left! We wanted to give ya some stuff!”

“Aw, you got Cinder gifts? That’s so sweet!”

“Uh huh! Here’s mine!”

“It’s...a book?”

“A comic book! The first ten chapters of _X-Ray and Vav: Sentai Supremacy_! I got it as a birthday present a few years ago, but I’ve read it a thousand times now, so you can have it!”

“Oh! W-Well thank you, Ruby!”

“And here’s what I got you!”

“...what is this?”

“It’s a good luck charm! I had it with me when I first started training to get my Semblance, so maybe it’ll help you out!”

“I see...I’m glad you believe in me so much, Yang. Thank you.”

“Aw!”

“You’re still grounded for trying to fight her, though.”

“Aw…”

“Well, I’d best be getting on the ship. I’m very glad that I got to meet the two of you.”

“It was awesome meeting you, too, Cinder!”

“Have a nice trip!”

\-------------------------

Vale, the big city. From the docks to the streets, every corner is buzzing with activity. Vendors at the docks selling all kinds of sweets, construction of new buildings going on, business women having full conferences on their scrolls, Huntresses patrolling the streets, the few pickpockets dashing around to avoid said Huntresses, students buzzing around cafes in excitement for their first year at Beacon coming soon, babies crying, cars zooming, the smell of Dust exhaust in the air, the sun shining down in the sky without a single cloud to stop it, the buildings towering over Cinder as she walks away from the docks. If Patch’s main square made her uncomfortable, this place is making her shake in her heels.

She keeps her head down as she walks to the taxi station, trying not to draw attention to herself; the less people see her, the less spooked she’ll be of this crowd. Luckily enough, one manages to pull up just moments after she arrives. She gulps a bit as she enters the back seat, putting her bags on the other side. Once she’s buckled in, the car starts up. The driver looks back to her, making her sit up. “Where to, miss?”

Cinder takes her scroll out of one of her bags, pulling up the address Watts sent her. “Ah, 1894 Nikki Street.” The driver nods before putting the address into a console in the car’s dashboard. Once that’s done, the car takes off down the street, leaving Cinder to face her greatest challenge yet; Small talk.

“So, this your first time in the kingdom?”

“Um, yes.”

“Where ya from?”

“...Mistral.”

“I see. You know, I know somebody in Mistral. Used to go to college with em. Nice lady.”

“Uh huh…”

“She always wears robes, though. Like, beige robes. I don’t know what her deal is with beige.”

“It’s...a color.”

“Yeah, but it’s so boring, you know? I mean, why can’t she wear something like what you’ve got? Speaking of which, love the dress. Where’d you get it?”

“A gift...from a friend.”

“You must have some rich friends, then! What is she, a doctor?”

“Y-Yes, actually…”

“Nice. Nice.”

This exchange goes on longer than Cinder wishes it to. She can feel her soul breaking down with each question.

Her torture finally ends once she gets to her destination. Despite her manners, she grabs her bags and steps out of the car without a single word. Luckily, the driver takes the hint and leaves. She looks up to the building before her; a large apartment building looking to be about six stories high. The paint on the outside seems to be new and brighter in comparison to the buildings next to it. As she walks up the steps to the front door, she looks to her right and sees another up-to-date building; this one is only shorter, a story high, but with a neon sign on the front of it. Since it’s daytime, she can’t read the sign, but it does look kind of interesting. Either way, she has to deal with this apartment first. As she enters, she finds that the interior is far from how plain the outside is.

The floors are lined with crimson carpeting. A chandelier hangs from the ceiling, replicating the ones in Salem’s castle. Multiple couches and loveseats are peppered around the room, leading back into a large kitchen. The front desk is right across from the entrance, decorated with newly bought candles and a large basket of fruit. Cinder shuts the doors, looking around as she approaches the front desk. “Hello?”, she calls out, only to find silence. On the bag wrapping the fruit basket is a note. She takes it off and reads it, finding that it’s from Watts.

_The keys to the building are under the desk. Tonight, head for the club next to this place. When you get to one of the security guards, show them the card attached to this note to first get inside, and then ask for Romania once inside. You’ll get a meeting with the owner and have Salem speak with them. She’ll take care of everything from there. You don’t have to do it right away, enjoy yourself there._

_-Anne Watts_

\---------------------------------------

As the day goes on, Cinder explores her new building, she finds that almost every room has a chest in it containing sex toys. Each room is also a replica of her room from the castle, only the walls are colored a slightly brighter shade of red instead of the maroon red. She keeps herself busy afterwards by reading the comic book Ruby gifted her; she finds it...interesting, but she still doesn’t like Countess Chaos’ outfit. She also practices her Semblance in front of the window, superheating her hands around the dust particles to form them into glass. She struggles trying to shape the glass into a small ball. It comes out a little more lumpy than she wants, but it’s a start. When the time comes, Cinder takes the card from Watt’s note, locks up the apartment, and heads for the place next door. To her surprise, there’s a small line forming outside the place between velvet ropes. She looks up to the now illuminated neon sign as she gets in line; The Suave Cigar. An interesting name, but it doesn’t tell Cinder of what it’s supposed to be. It takes her a while, but once she shows off the card to the guard, she’s allowed inside the building to see for herself what it is.

Bright lights fill Cinder’s eyes as she steps inside. Music blares through the giant amps surrounding a man on a booth seemingly toying with a strange console. People dance and stomp to the music, some chugging down drinks as they do. At the bar, more people drink and flirt with each other. Some scantily clad women walk around with trays of more drinks for tables and booths. The stench of alcohol and cigarette smoke hangs in the air. Cinder finds an empty table to sit at, looking out for a security guard to approach. Just as she spots one, however, the lights begin to dim as the deejay speaks through the speakers. “Allllllllright ladies! Tonight we have a brand new arrival to the club! Now I’m sure you all love Lil’ Mime, but this new arrival is sure to leave an impression on you all! Coming all the way from Mistral, please give a warm round of applause for ATHENA!”

As the music slowly begins to pick up, a stage slowly begins to rise from the center of the bar, much to Cinder’s surprise. Seems like this place has more surprises to it than she expects. A woman donning a black cloak stands on the stage as it rises, a long, silver pole slowly extends down from the ceiling to connect to it next to her. As it arrives, the woman grabs it with a gloved hand, slowly beginning to walk around it. Her cloak falls off as she walks, revealing an elaborate metal outfit; Her face is hidden behind a metal operatic mask, her red hair flows down her body in a series of braids, her top is a metal bikini with brass pauldrons and golden decorations, her bottoms are a simple thong with translucent silk hanging from the front and the back of the waistband, her lower legs cloaked in black, heeled boots with brass-colored laces, her body sculpted to perfection for both beauty and strength.

Cinder is drawn to the movements of “Athena” as the rave music dictates their tempo, emphasizing each sway of her hips and spin of the pole. Within seconds, “Athena” can go from squatting before the crowd in a proud display to suddenly leaping back onto the pole to hang upside down on it by her thighs. From there, she slowly spins down to the floor, doing a handstand as her legs perform a midair split. While it does get the crowd and Cinder going with the sight of her pronounced backside, Cinder can’t help but giggle at the silk momentarily covering “Athena’s” face. Despite this setback, “Athena” is quick to flip forward to the edge of the stage, standing proudly at the clamouring women throwing fistfuls of lien to her feet. She playfully puts her hand up to her ear, hearing the crowd slowly unite into a single chant; “TAKE! IT! OFF! TAKE! IT! OFF!” Cinder can see, even from two tables away from the stage, the small drop of arousal rolling down “Athena’s” thigh.

The music begins to build up in tempo as the crowd begins to realize that “Athena’s” top is shaking. At the apex of the beat, it bursts off as if it was completely dismantled from the inside out. However, none of the pieces hit the audience. Rather, they begin to swirl around “Athena” as she dances around the pole, sticking out her chest to show off her exposed breasts. She presses them around the pole, licking the pole seductively as the crowd goes wild. One by one, the pieces float their way to the tables of a select few, one of which being Cinder’s. As the song nears its end, “Athena” makes a show of dance by spinning on the pole up to the top using only her strong legs as torque. She ends her performance with a pose from the top of the pole and a blown kiss to the crowd. “Everybody, give it up for ATHENA!!!”, the deejay shouts as the stripper lowers back down to the stage so it can whisk her back down below.

Cinder turns the armor piece around in her hands, mulling over her thoughts of the performer. She could certainly tell that this “Athena” is an exhibitionist in some form. If she can get a chance to speak with them, perhaps they will be her first member. Before that, Cinder has a job to do. She gets up from her table to approach one of the security guards and shows them the card. “Where can I speak to a Romania?”

The guard, saying nothing, points Cinder to a door in the back of the bar. Cinder nods and heads there, the guard at the door opening it for her. She heads down the staircase the door leads to, arriving in another bar. This one has the stage sitting in the center with a woman collecting the discarded lien bills on top of it. This woman has a strange appearance; her hair is brown and pink, along with her eyes, being dressed in a suit jacket cut low to show her leotard-covered midriff, dress pants and matching white heeled boots, and the strangest addition being a pink parasol hanging from a strap on her left thigh. Behind her, “Athena” is being talked to by another woman lounging on a lavish couch.

“Nice show tonight, kid!”, the woman says before taking a drag of her cigar. “I gotta say, you surprised me at the end there with the whole ‘breaking your top’ bit. Though, for the future, make sure you don’t lose them. That kind of fancy getup isn’t easy to come by, if you get my meaning.” The woman rubs her fingertips together as a sign of how costly the outfit is. “Either way, you made a big splash out there!” The woman then looks behind “Athena”, spotting Cinder at the entrance. She stands up, finally giving Cinder a good look at her; an elaborate dress coat showing off her cleavage, similar dress pants to the woman on the stage, a grew ascot tied around her neck, and long, ginger hair spilling down from her black bowler hat. “Can I help you, sweetheart?”, she says with a snarky tone.

Cinder clears her throat as she walks into the room. “Are you Romania Torchwick?”

Romania, with a smirk, swings her arms out wide. “In the flesh! Here for me to make you famous like Athena here?” Cinder smiles, rubbing her Mark through her dress much to the trio’s confusion. The Mark then glows and spreads across Cinder’s body as red tendrils, giving Salem control. Her eyes open, showing red staring out from black at the three. The shortest girl in the room moves in front of Romania, pulling out her parasol and pointing it at Salem with a menacing glare. Salem chuckles at this.

“Now now, there’s no need to be alarmed! My name is Salem, and I am speaking to you through my follower, Cinder Fall. I believe your strip club can benefit greatly from a...joint business venture. How would you like to have this place be the biggest club in Vale?”

Romania raises an eyebrow at this, taking the cigar out from between her teeth and waving her hand down at the multicolored missy. “...Neo, stand down.” Neo, looking bored, puts her parasol back on it’s holster with a roll of her eyes. “You’ve got my attention, Salem...What’s this business venture of yours?”

Salem’s smile grows wider. “Oh, it’s quite simple; You are in need of employees and I am in need of tenants. Cinder runs the apartment building next door, which can serve as a home for your lovely dancers.”

Romania walks back to the lavish couch, tapping her cigar over an ashtray next to it as she sits down. “I think I see what you’re getting at...So if I get you in on my business, you’ll get me more girls for the club?”

“As well as getting you out of Junior’s hair.”

Romania’s expression lights up in surprise. “Oh-ho! So you know about Junior! I like a woman who can make these kinds of talks fast and easy. Just one thing, if I may; how exactly are you going to get girls here?”

“Romania, think about it.” Salem begins to pace over to the bar, lazily dragging her finger over it’s marble countertop. “Vale may be a metropolis, but it is far from perfect. There are bound to be plenty of unfortunate souls out in the streets in desperate need of a home. They come to the hotel, Cinder works her magic on them, and before you know it, you’ll have an entire line up of girls to dance for the masses, and perhaps do even more…”

At this point, the skeptical ice cream girl is beginning to look interested in this deal. Romania takes another drag at the cigar, drinking all this information in. “Athena” is standing in the middle of this, looking very confused as to where this is all going. “Uh huh...so in summation, you pick up girls off the streets, make em into sluts, and then make them my dancers? I gotta say, this sounds almost too good to be true. Tell ya what, I’ll give you a month to get me my first dancer. If they tickle my fancy, I’ll consider making all of this official. Whaddya say?”

“Sounds like a deal, Torchwick.”

“Agreeable, too! I’m liking you already! Oh, and since you’re offering, you think you can set up Athena here with a room? She’ll explain her whole situation to ya there.”

“I’d be happy to.”

“Pleasure doing business with ya.”

\---------------------------------------

Once outside, Cinder ushers the cloaked stripper to follow. Luckily, Salem had the foresight to have Romania explain everything before giving Cinder control again, so she isn’t terribly in the dark. Though she is in the dark of the back way, but not for long. Cinder leads “Athena” back to the apartment complex, quickly unlocking the door in order to get them both out of the chilly night. Cinder flicks a switch near the door, lighting up the front room to the stripper’s amazement. With the doors locked again, Cinder heads for the front desk to grab a room key. “So,” she says while walking, “Is Athena your real name?”

The stripper looks down, seemingly nervous about answering. “W-Well...if you’re working with Miss Torchwick, I suppose I can tell you…” Cinder raises an eyebrow at this, wondering what could be so important about her identity. “Athena” takes off the metal mask with a shaky smile, looking up to Cinder. “I’m actually Pyrrha Nikos…” Cinder nods, being unamused by the name. “You know...THE Pyrrha Nikos.” Cinder is now confused, tilting her head at this emphasis on her name. “Do...you not know who I am?”

“...Should I?”

“I’m the prodigy child of Argus.”

“...”

“Graduated top of my class at Sanctum Academy?”

“...”

“Won the Mistral Regional Tournament four times in a row, breaking the record for most tournaments won there?”

“...”

“I’m...on the Pumpkin Pete cereal boxes…?”

Cinder blinks in surprise. “Wait...Oh! That’s you? Hm, interesting.”

“You don’t sound very surprised...Have you really never heard of me before?”

“Pyrrha, since you and I will be working together, I’ll level with you; I have been living a very sheltered and abusive life since I was born that’s only changed for the better in the last five months. I haven’t even read a comic book until today and the last time I had cereal was when I was fifteen.”

“Oh my! I-I’m sorry for bringing that up…” Pyrrha shrinks in her cloak, rubbing her thumbs over her mask in shame. Cinder chuckles at this, surprising the young warrior. “W-What’s so funny?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. I just understood why Salem thought I was so adorable when we first met.”

“...Speaking of this Salem...Why are you and her doing this?”

Cinder smiles, already excited to get her first member. “Come, I’ll explain on the way to your room.” She leads the champion up to the second floor, holding the room key in her hand while she explains the purpose of Salem’s work. She expects Pyrrha to be prudish about the ordeal, but to her pleasant surprise, Pyrrha seems more curious about the project. As the two arrive at the door, Cinder hands Pyrrha the key. “We can talk more about it in the morning. You’ve had quite the performance, so I won’t keep you awake for long.”

Pyrrha takes the key with a small nod. “Thank you...I have to admit, this is the first time I’ve done something this...bold before. I thought fighting gave me goosebumps, but dancing? It’s a whole different world…” Cinder, not wanting to interrupt this lewd introspection, leans against the opposite hallway wall, listening with a smirk. “I don’t know why, but just thinking about all of those people seeing me and cheering for my body...I didn’t feel like some star child, I felt like a...I-I can’t describe it, I-”

“Felt like a slut?”, Cinder chimes in. Pyrrha visibly blushes at this, much to Cinder’s delight. “Believe me, I know the feeling. During my training, I had to walk around the castle completely nude. At first, it was embarrassing, but later on, I enjoyed it. Feeling everyone’s gaze on me, my most sacred areas easily grabable, not to mention how flattering it is to hear them compliment your body. It’s...intoxicating, but oh so liberating.”

Pyrrha looks in silent awe at Cinder. “I...that’s almost exactly how I felt...Wow, you really know your stuff about this side of society, don’t you?”

“Pyrrha…” She walks forward, placing her hand on the champion’s shoulder. “You wouldn’t **believe** the things I know about this lewd world you’ve entered. In fact...Why don’t I show you a thing or two right now?” Cinder loves watching Pyrrha’s blush slowly spread across her face up close. She can still see the innocence in Pyrrha’s eyes, remembering her time being trained with Salem. Her other hand grips her own thigh, anticipating the moment she gets to watch Pyrrha break. 

That might have to wait, however. Pyrrha may be exposing herself to this world, but she’s still far from Cinder’s level. “I-I...Maybe some other time…” Cinder simply shrugs in acceptance, but whispers to Pyrrha before she leaves;

“Check the chest.”

As Cinder drifts off to sleep, she can hear the silent gasps and muffled moans Pyrrha makes across the hall, bringing a smile to her face.


	8. Eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait (again), but here's one more chapter for the holidays! Thank you all for sticking with me so far and I hope you enjoy!

The kingdom is quiet in the morning; the speeding of cars blends in with the white noise of birds high in the sky, creating a metropolitan ambiance. Sunlight streams into the apartment window, shining off of the scarlet hair spilled over a pillow. The sleeping champion lays in a heap on her bed, the covers haphazardly kicked off her nude body. Her sculpted chest and toned stomach rise and fall slowly with each breath, looking like an ancient statue in motion. Laying between her legs is a single pink dildo, shining with her juices from the previous night. A lovely sight for Cinder, who stands at the doorway to Pyrrha’s room. As she stares at the champion’s loins, a devilish thought passes through her head. With a smirk, she walks to the foot of Pyrrha’s bed in order to lay right between her legs. She moves the dildo away to stare at the shaven pussy before her, admiring it with a sense of nostalgia; she can already hear Salem complimenting her…

Slowly, Cinder leans in to plant a small kiss against Pyrrha’s lower lips, delighting in the small gasp she makes in her sleep. Smiling to herself, Cinder gently traces the tip of her tongue across and between Pyrrha’s folds, leaving her to shudder and softly moan. She takes extra care to make her tongue move as gently as possible in order to keep Pyrrha wanting more, randomly pressing it between her folds and into her lower lips. She can feel Pyrrha squirming against the bed and hear her moans slowly getting louder. She glances up to see Pyrrha’s eyes slowly opening; the girl is awakening, but gradually. Cinder keeps her tongue working as she stares at the awakening Pyrrha, watching her expression shift from bliss to aroused confusion. 

“Wha…?”, Pyrrha mumbles before gasping from the sudden entrance of Cinder’s finger into her lowest sanctum. Cinder smiles at this, leaning on the champion’s thigh while exploring her insides, enjoying the scrunched expression of pleasure she makes.

“Good morning, my sweet little champion.”, she coos. “I hope you don’t mind this little surprise.” Pyrrha tries to say something, but a sudden second finger makes a moan steal her words away. “My my,” Cinder hums while slightly wiggling her fingers inside of Pyrrha, “It’s so roomy in here. Seems all of that exercise did more than just make you irresistibly attractive.” From there, she drags her fingers in and out of Pyrrha at a steady pace, all the while she peppers the champion with compliments, much like Salem did for her. Watching Pyrrha cover her face with her hands makes Cinder’s cheeks hurt with how much she’s smiling. Cinder feels the insides of the champion start to close around her fingers, a telltale sign of the approaching end. With that, Cinder curls her fingers inside of Pyrrha and watches the show of Pyrrha’s orgasm; the sounds of her squeals are music to Cinder’s ears while the tightening of her cunt is like a hug to her fingers. She eases her fingers out slowly, aiding Pyrrha in her cooldown. Once out, she crawls up to Pyrrha’s side and makes a performance out of cleaning her moist fingers with her mouth, much to the champion’s embarrassment. “Absolutely perfect, just like the rest of your body.”, she comments. She brushes the loose red locks out of Pyrrha’s eyes before leaning down to kiss her cheek softly. “I’ll get breakfast ready for you, dear.”

\-----------------------------------------------

Having another person in the complex certainly makes the day much better for Cinder. Pyrrha is the kind of houseguest that acts as if they are always in the presence of royalty; she constantly offers to help with dishes and the like, she listens intently to Cinder’s stories, and she is quick to throw in compliments. Cinder can get used to having company like this. The two of them sit on a couch together after breakfast, getting ready to speak more about their agreement.

Pyrrha is the first to speak. “So, Miss Fall, what exactly do you have planned for me?”

“Simple; I will teach you how to be a member of Salem’s court. With the merge of her kingdom and the club you work at now, you’ll be doing much more than just dancing.” As excited as Cinder is, she looks concerned at Pyrrha shifting in her seat timidly. “Is something wrong?” She decides to poke the bear a bit, figure out why this shifting is taking place. Pyrrha jumps a bit, quickly waving her hands in front of herself.

“Oh, it’s nothing! It’s just, well...I’ve already applied to be a student at Beacon Academy. Or, my parents have, at least. This whole ‘stripper’ thing is just a summer job I want to keep secret. I...I just wanted to know what it feels like to be a normal person instead of a champion…” Pyrrha looks away, feeling ashamed of her weakness. Cinder feels a deep resonance with Pyrrha in this moment; trying to be an ideal for someone else has been her entire life’s experience. To see it in a person who’s led a much better life than her, it turns her stomach. She grips the arm of the sofa, feeling it heat up under her hand slightly.

“Pyrrha,” she announces, “you deserve to feel like a normal person every day. Your parents, your admirers, they do not get to dictate who you are. YOU dictate who you are.” She takes her hand off the sofa, leaving a blackened hand print on it, pointing to Pyrrha’s chest. “You have the strength, the spirit, and the heart to make your own choices. Most would never dare to get up on that stage and dance, but you did with a smile and a flair that left the crowd breathless.” Pyrrha’s eyes widen from this speech, beginning to nervously scratch the back of her head.

“B-But I hid behind a mask. How is that brave at-”

“The mask doesn’t matter! You didn’t get on that stage for the sake of anyone else, did you?” Cinder moves closer to Pyrrha, gripping her shoulders to get right to her face. “Well?” The shocked Pyrrha sputters for a moment.

“N-No, I did it on my own-”

“Then why does it matter if you had that mask? Open your eyes, Pyrrha! You are strong, you are powerful, you deserve to do whatever you wish!” She wishes to continue, but sees the shock in Pyrrha’s eyes, making her mouth shut. She clears her throat, backing away. “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to come off as aggressive…”

“No no, it’s okay…” The room is quiet for a while as Cinder rubs the black spot she made on the couch. Pyrrha looks down at her hands, watching them clutch together. After a while, she heaves out a sigh. “You...might be right. I appreciate the brutal honesty, I just...Being a Huntress is my dream, even if it means I’ll be alone forever.”

“Who says you have to be alone?”

“Huh?”

“Pyrrha, Salem does not wish to make you a slave. You can be as free as you wish. Our doors are always open to you, so if you feel that being a Huntress is more important, I will not stop you.”

“But what about Romania…?”

“She’ll get her dancers, don’t you worry. In fact…” Cinder stands up, regaining her focus. “I should go and see if I can find one. Actually, would you like to come with me?” Cinder doesn’t want to leave Pyrrha alone here, yet she also doesn’t want to overwhelm her, either. Pyrrha looks down for a bit before looking up to Cinder with a nod. Perhaps the two can connect over the sights of the city.

\---------------------------------

As it turns out, bringing Pyrrha along was the best choice. The champion quickly takes the lead of the walk, leading Cinder along the way in order to show her more of the city. While the two are essentially tourists, Pyrrha still has more experience with things like vendors and restaurants. The two managed to find a place to sit down for lunch, leading Cinder to discover a new favorite in the form of greasy food. One bite into her first burger and her eyes light up, making Pyrrha giggle. “My nutritionist doesn’t normally let me eat wherever I want, but since it’s summer, they’re cutting me some slack.” Cinder doesn’t know what a “nutritionist” is, but she doesn’t care; the burger speaks to her stomach in ways no other food has before.

The peace of their lunch date is interrupted, however, by the sudden shouting of a woman across the street from the patio they both sit at. “Stop! Thief!” The woman points to a green-haired girl making a mad dash towards the alleyways. Pyrrha suddenly drops her food in order to leap off of her chair, rolling across the street to break into a run after this green girl. Cinder, taking one last swift bite of her burger, is quick to follow. Pyrrha’s speed increases easily, making the green girl pound her legs even more. Cinder struggles to catch up to them, but it looks like that isn’t necessary; Pyrrha extends her hand as a black energy envelops it. The weapons in the holsters on the back of the green girl suddenly fly out into Pyrrha’s hands. Pyrrha studies them for a moment just as the green girl turns into a corner. Cinder follows her in as Pyrrha slows down, allowing her to so she can follow suit. Cinder stops as the thief turns against the back wall of the alley, her teeth clenched in anger. She reaches for her weapons, only to grasp air. Her sweat and blood run cold as her eyes go wide, pressing back further into the back wall.

“S-Stay back!” Cinder holds her hands up just as Pyrrha runs in with the girl’s weapons. The thief gasps upon laying her eyes on the two green rifles, growling in defiance. Pyrrha begins to step forward, but Cinder moves her arm in front of her, narrowing her eyes. 

“No. I’ll handle this.” Pyrrha looks to her unsure for a moment, but steps back. There’s a flame in Cinder’s eyes that gives the champion a bit of reassurance. Cinder slowly steps forward, much to the thief’s ire.

“I said stay back!”

“Calm down.”

“Don’t come any closer!”

“I’m not going to hurt you.”

“What part of ‘Stay Back’ don’t you fucking get?!”

“Pull yourself together, girl! I am unarmed and non-aggressive. Even without your weapons, you can still kill me in an instant, I can tell.” Cinder keeps her tone soft, yet firm. She can see the panic in this girl’s expression, knowing that panic herself all too well. “Please, just calm down. We won’t turn you in.”

Pyrrha blinks at this. “We won’t?”

“No. We won’t.” Cinder reiterates, biting back at Pyrrha’s insistence. The thief slowly moves away from the back wall, keeping her arms up as if either of them can dash at her in an instant. Her eyes dart between the two, keeping her focus on the champion.

“W-What do you want with me, then?”

“Let me guess; you robbed that woman because you’re alone and hungry, right?”

“Actually, it’s because of Nonya”

“..Who is Nonya?”

“Nonya damn business, bitch.”

“Oh...Clever.” Cinder smiles at this for a moment, visually disturbing the thief. She clears her throat before continuing. “Listen, I’ve been where you are before; stuck in a terrible life on the streets, no one to help me, no one to care about me. It...it’s terrible, isn’t it?” She watches as the thief slowly relaxes her shoulders, yet still clenches the pilfered wallet in her hand. “You know, I used to pickpocket myself. However, I’ve managed to have people save me. A hand extended in friendship gave me a new life. Please, allow me to do the same for you.” She slowly approaches the quivering thief, offering her hand. “All you need to do is give me that wallet and I’ll take care of the rest.” The girl pulls the wallet closer to herself. 

“H-How can I trust you?!” Cinder’s patience does not waver. She only smiles gently at her. 

“You have wonderful eyes,” she comments out of nowhere, seemingly, “eyes of innocence. Like diamonds in the rough. I hate to see those eyes clouded with tears, or even imagine them like that. If I may, will you allow me a chance to keep your eyes free of sorrow?” The thief looks Cinder up and down, confused by the offer. Pyrrha watches between the two cautiously, gripping the two rifles in case of any surprise attacks. However, it seems like that won’t be needed, for the thief slowly raises her occupied hand to Cinder’s open one, handing over the wallet.

\---------------------------

With the thief slumbering in one of the other rooms and Pyrrha watching over her, Cinder has a chance to slip into a secret entrance to a basement in the apartment complex’s kitchen. She stumbled across it the previous day while waiting for the club to open, realizing that it has a one-way communicator to Salem in the form of one of those floating Grimm orbs. Cinder closes the hatch before descending down the ladder and facing the orb in the center of the small room. She approaches it, her Mark glowing brighter the closer she gets. The darkness of the orb swirls into red clouds to reveal Salem’s face, smiling through the fleshy glass. 

“Yes, my dear?”

“Your Grace, I have acquired two possible members to my Branch; one is a popular Huntress prodigy and the other is an unfortunate soul I brought from the streets.”

“Well done! Only a few days in and you’ve made good progress!”

“Thank you, Your Grace. However, I have some concerns…”

“Oh? What is it?”

“The prodigy, Pyrrha. I fear that her dream of being a Huntress might lead to us being discovered after the summer.”

“I understand your concern, but that will easily be taken care of. The more youth you have join us, the more our little mark will simply seem like a friend group activity. Besides, we have Summer to aid us as well. Once we have enough under our umbrella, we can move on to step two of our plan. Stay the course and don’t deny Pyrrha’s dream; all will be well in the end.”

“I understand. I will continue the course.”

\--------------------------------------

With the night comes another performance for Pyrrha. Cinder bids her a fond farewell at the door, wishing she could come along, but knows she has much more important things to worry about. She closes the door and heads for the dining area where the thief is almost inhaling the meal she prepared for her. Cinder chuckles at this softly, sitting down at the green girl’s side. “So,” she attracts the girl’s attention away from the small feast, “you said your name was Emerald, correct?” Emerald, wanting to eat more, nods and continues to devour her meal. Cinder is a little disturbed by the appetite of the thief, but at the same time, she had a similar reaction to her first big meal after losing her childhood home. “G-Good to know…”

Emerald finishes quickly, slouching in satisfaction, but as she looks to Cinder’s smiling face, she quickly sits back up. “Uh...What’s with the smile?” Cinder tilts her head a bit at this question.

“What’s wrong with smiling?” Emerald scratches the back of her head and looks away.

“Just..not used to being around people...much less people smiling at me while I ate.” Cinder’s face swiftly gets a little red at this, making her chuckle in an awkward tone. 

“F-Fair enough...I apologize, I’m just glad to have you here.”

“Right...so, am I like, gonna have to pay rent or something?”

“Oh, of course not! You’ll be living here rent free.”

“You...can’t fool me.”

“Huh?”

“Lady, I’ve been around the block with your type. Even if I get something nice, there’s some kind of catch, isn’t there?”

“Truly, there is no catch here. I only wish to present a choice.”

“Ah-ha!” Emerald stands up out of her chair, pointing at Cinder. “I knew it, there _is_ a catch! What is it, huh? Want me to be a maid or some shit like that?!”

Cinder quickly stands up as well, eager to defend herself. “No no no! I am not saying you can’t stay here unless you do something for me! I am simply asking you if you want to do something with me!” Emerald folds her arms under chest, staring daggers at Cinder’s seemingly flimsy defense. Cinder didn’t expect her second tenant to be so full of vinegar, but she can’t say she’s not enjoying the challenge of convincing her.

Emerald, however, doesn’t seem to be enjoying any of this. “Look, that whole speech you had in the alley made me think you were some kind of nun-” Not entirely wrong, Cinder thought. “-trying to give me charity or some shit. But I know better than to get my hopes up. I don’t what kind of job you’re trying to get me to pull, so either spill it or I’ll spill your guts all over this tacky carpeting!” As a show of force, Emerald whips out her rifles and flips the blades on their ends out, pointing them at Cinder. Cinder regrets giving them back. 

Cinder sighs a bit, her face stern with annoyance. Slowly, she lifts one finger and pushes the blades down from her body, much to Emerald’s surprise. “Listen to me,” she says with an eerie calm, " **I am not your enemy.** I am not some crime lord seeking to pawn you off like a sheep for the slaughter. I am not a perverted freak seeking to prey on defenseless women. I am sorry your past experiences have made you believe that I am those things, but I am not. So, if you would be so kind as to put your weapons away and we can discuss my offer like adults. Can you do that for me, Emerald?” Cinder is already expecting to get more sass in response, but Emerald actually flips her blades back in and puts them away. Cinder is shocked by this, until she remembers a lesson from the castle…

_“Pain can only be given by a strong will. Not a strong body, not a strong sense of sarcasm, a strong will. Usually when you have someone who always speaks with anger or threats, all it takes is confidence to break their front and they’ll be willing to submit.”_

With this in mind, Cinder keeps up her stern look as she goes to sit at the couch, Emerald following without a word. As the two sit down, Cinder explains the purpose of her branch and the deal she made with Romania’s club. She watches Emerald’s expression, noting how there wasn’t one instance of anger during the whole explanation. This pleases Cinder, giving her a feeling of superiority over this girl. Once she’s done, she relaxes her shoulders and allows a moment of silence to give Emerald a chance to understand it all.

“So...This is a sex cult?”

“In a manner of speaking.”

“Is there, like...any creepy shit to it?”

“If you count a mystical tattoo as creepy.”

“Right, the whole ‘Salem takes you over’ thing...Hold on, why are you telling me this if it’s supposed to be secret? How do you know I’m not just gonna tell the cops or the Huntresses?”

“Two things. One, you’re a criminal.”

“...Good point.”

“As for two…” Cinder then smiles at the thief, turning to gently take Emerald’s cheeks into her hand. She watches Emerald’s dark face get slightly darker in the cheeks, knowing her confidence is making this girl flustered. “I have a feeling that you won’t want to leave this place.” Their eyes meet, Cinder seeing the curiosity flare in Emerald’s gaze. She can feel the girl’s neck swallowing dryly against the side of her hand. 

“W-What makes you say that?”, Emerald inquires, trying to keep her crumbling mask of confidence together. Cinder only hums in amusement, sending a shiver to course through Emerald’s body. As Cinder slowly leans in closer, Emerald’s hands ball up into nervous fists; something inside of her is awakening from this intense stare, and she doesn’t know what it could mean. Cinder, however, knows it all too well. 

“Tell me something, Emerald,” Cinder whispers inches away from Emerald’s lips, “are you afraid of me?” This makes Emerald’s eyebrows go up in confusion. This older woman is already giving her a lot of conflicting emotions, and yet, she could not truly feel fear in her heart. Something about Cinder fills her with an odd sense of calm, soothing her soul despite her mind being in turmoil.

“I-I...n-no?” Emerald is barely able to get that out of her suddenly panting mouth. She’s never felt this way from any woman before. Cinder’s smile only gets wider at this response. 

“Good” briefly escapes Cinder’s lips before she seals them around Emerald’s own.

Cinder leads the charge as her hand moves to caress the back of Emerald’s head during this kiss. Her other hand slowly travels up Emerald’s exposed side, leaving a trail of goosebumps all the way to her back. She hugs the thief closer to her body, feeling her shudder in her grip. She greedily presses her tongue through Emerald’s lips, working her way to taste every inch of it. The excitement of her first member is almost too much to bear, driving her to grip a fistful of green ponytail in order to push her deeper into the kiss. She can feel the girl’s pulse against her own chest, her breath being stolen by Cinder’s impulses. If she cannot break Pyrrha, she will gladly break this desperate soul that was close to her own heart. 

As Cinder pulls her away, a band of saliva briefly connects their hanging tongues. Emerald sits there, panting heavily from the heated kiss with a shocked, yet lovestruck expression. Cinder bites her lip at this sight, bringing the hand on Emerald’s back over to trace circles on the pad of Emerald’s tongue, making her shudder in response. She stares back at Emerald’s eyes, nearly able to see her reflection in their red hue. “Such beautiful eyes…”, she mutters before releasing the tongue to push Emerald down on the couch.

Cinder delights in seeing Emerald look up in awe at her, that familiar toxin filling her head once more. She looms over Emerald, leaning down to pepper her dark skin with greedy kisses starting at her cheeks. Her kisses trail down to her neck, then her collarbone, until she has her face hovering over the olive green top concealing her chest. She looks up, seeing Emerald is laying back with her arm over her eyes. With a grin, she traces her finger over one of the thin, white straps and makes a simple, yet stern command;

**“Look at me.”**

Emerald gulps before moving her arm away to see Cinder staring back up at her with a finger twirling the strap around itself, looking like a tiger eagerly stalking its prey. Cinder releases the strap to let it snap back down on Emerald’s skin, making her gasp in a wonderful way. “Don’t take your eyes off of me.”, she orders while slowly pushing the top over her breasts, “I want you to watch me appreciate every last inch of your luscious skin.” With that, Cinder slides her hands down Emerald’s sides to bring them up to her chest, cupping her breasts and lifting them up. Cinder leans in to lick at their undersides, causing soft moans to bubble out of Emerald’s mouth. She releases them and drags the tip of her tongue between the valley of her mounds, tracing around them both before licking up to the left nipple. She lets a drop of her saliva land on the center of her areola before blowing gently on it, feeling Emerald shiver as her nipple stiffens to a peak. She locks eyes with the thief as she envelops the nipple between her lips, sucking on it to watch Emerald throw her head back as a sudden moan erupts from her lips. Cinder immediately stops in order to give the other nipple a swift twist, making Emerald yelp in sudden pain.

“Ow! W-Wha-”

**“I said to look at me. Do not let your eyes leave mine. Understand?”**

Emerald feels herself blush at the commanding tone. With her throat getting dryer from the heat of their bodies, she only manages to nod. Cinder accepts this and continues to suck on Emerald’s left nipple, still keeping her eyes fixated on Emerald’s own. This time, however, Emerald forces herself to keep staring down at Cinder, despite the pleasure beginning to cloud her mind. Cinder lavishes both of Emerald’s breasts with attention, leaving kisses and small bites at the undersides while sicking and gently biting both of her nipples. Emerald is a mewling mess, clutching the couch cushions like her life depended on it. Cinder can see the desperation in Emerald’s eyes, predicting all of the thoughts going through her head; _“Just fuck me already! Why are you making me wait?! Gods, I’m so wet!”_ These thoughts encourage her to finally drag her tongue further down Emerald’s body, leaving the girl with glistening breasts as she reaches the silver buckle of her pants. 

Without breaking eye contact, Cinder expertly undoes the puzzle of belts and buckles keeping Emerald’s pants and chaps strapped to her waist. If she wasn’t busy being horny, Emerald would be thoroughly impressed at this. Cinder then pulls off the jeans, chaps, belts, weapon holsters with the weapons still in them, and panties to leave her as bare as possible. Now Emerald is truly impressed, despite still being horny. Cinder sets the heap of clothing down gently-to preserve the weapons, of course-before laying back down between Emerald’s thighs. She leaves small kisses on the inside of them, making the thief softly whimper in anticipation. Cinder hovers her lips right in front of Emerald’s moistening entrance, locking eyes with the girl once more in order to gently blow against the quivering lips. Emerald shudders, biting down on her lip as she struggles to keep her head facing down. “Before I continue,” Cinder huskily breathes out, “I want to hear you say something for me. Can you do that?” Emerald, desperate for her release, nods quickly. Cinder smirks at this enthusiasm, knowing she is moments away from claiming someone of her own. “I want you to tell me exactly what you think of me.” She expects confusion from this, but again, is pleasantly surprised by Emerald’s answer.

“I-I...Gods, I think you’re the hottest woman I’ve ever met!” Cinder hums in approval.

“Go on…”

“Y-Your eyes make my heart stop in an instant! The way you make me stare at you, the way you stare at me while you do this to my body, I-I can’t help but freeze! I-” She suddenly gasps as Cinder presses her finger into her tight passage, coaxing a moan out of her.

“That’s all I needed to hear. Now, enjoy yourself. I know you’ll still feel me staring at you.”

With that, Cinder begins her assault on Emerald’s core by sucking on her clit and pumping her finger in and out of her pussy. She hums against the throbbing clit as Emerald squeals out moan after ear-pleasuring moan, thrashing her head against the cushions. Cinder’s eyes hold their gaze on the writhing thief, especially on the bites she left on her. It wouldn’t be long until this girl is her own personal pet, and she is bubbling with anticipation for that day. She shows this by slipping not a second, not a third, but a fourth finger into Emerald’s passage, making said gem go wild with her moans. The walls around Cinder’s fingers begin to pulsate, giving her a handy clue as to what is about to come. As a last move, she curls all four of her fingers inside of Emerald, sending her over the edge as she screams out in euphoria. The thief’s nectar coat’s Cinder’s hand as she slowly massages the velvety walls with one finger, slipping the other three out one by one. As Emerald calms down from her orgasm, white spots dance around her vision. Her mind is spinning from the immense pleasure, so much so that she doesn’t realize Cinder is moving over her until she can feel her mouth being held down by...something. She weakly tries to push whatever is off of her, only to feel a body, making her understand what’s going on. She looks up at Cinder’s smiling face, peering down at her again with those godly eyes as she slowly grinds her pussy against Emerald’s lips. **“That’s it...Keep looking up at me like that...I want you to know the face of your new master very well…”**

\-----------------------------------------

A click of the door alerts Cinder, taking her attention away from the sleeping Emerald. The door opens to reveal Pyrrha coming back in her large cloak and metal mask. Cinder puts a finger to her lips, gesturing for the champion to stay quiet, which she does by slowly closing the door behind her. She walks up to the champion, helping to take her gym bag of clothes from her.

“How was the show tonight?”, she whispers.

“It was good,” Pyrrha whispers back, “much more of a crowd this time. I guess I got myself a new fanbase.” Cinder smiles at this, helping the girl out of her large cloak. As the two head for Pyrrha’s room, Pyrrha stops short at the door. “Cinder...I’ve made up my mind.”

“On?”

“On your offer. I want to join you and dance at this bar for the rest of the summer.”


	9. Exposed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! It's another Mark of Salem chapter before Christmas! I hope you enjoy!

Cinder wakes up first thing in the morning to the sound of her scroll’s alarm beeping next to her. With a tired groan, she pushes the little yellow button to silence the beeping and sits up in her bed. Despite her sleepy mind, she still feels excited for the day; after Pyrrha agreed to join last night, Cinder prepared the top floor room for her first initiation of two people. It’s because of her working on the ritual that she’s still tired now. Either way, there is more to do, and Cinder is eager to begin. After climbing out of bed and getting her hair under control, she heads to the elevator and rides up to the top floor. The first apartment room in the hallway is open, left that way by her last night. She walks in, seeing that her work is a bit sloppier than she remembers; the handcuffs she attached to the bed frames aren’t fastened tightly enough, she poured water into the ceremonial bowl she was given instead of wine, and she left her ceremonial dress hanging on the corner of the open bathroom door. Taking a deep breath, she gets everything fixed up as the sun rises higher outside the window. Once she’s dressed, she picks up one last part of her outfit; a white glove with a second symbol on the back of the hand. She slips it on and heads to the slumbering tenants.

She first goes to Emerald, who is still sleeping on the couch with her pants on the floor. Quietly, she kneels by the thief’s slumbering face and gently shakes her shoulder. “Emerald…” The girl grumbles. “Emerald, wake up…!” 

“Ugh...f-fuck off…”

“Wake up, Emerald…!”

Emerald finally awakens, groaning as she opens her eyes. She stares at Cinder for a couple seconds before remembering what happened last night. She pulls herself up by the couch cushions while scratching her cheek. “Ugh...I can’t believe that happened…”

“What do you mean?”

“Slept with someone…”

“Fun, wasn’t it?”

“Y-Yeah, it felt good...I think I still got some of your cum on my face...or is this just dried drool?”

“Not sure. Well, you won’t have to worry about it for long. Today is your initiation!”

“That explains the weird robes you got...do I get some of those?”

“No. At least not today. When we get another member, you can have your own robes. For now, if you would follow me.” The two of them move to the staircase, heading for Pyrrha’s room next. To Cinder’s surprise, she can hear Pyrrha speaking in a call inside. Curiously, she listens in.

“...Yes, I’ve gotten a place to stay at. It’s closer to the outskirts of the kingdom, but there’s an airship dock nearby. No, the dorms aren’t open yet. ...I’m fine, Mom, really I am. I-huh? ...Oh, the extra money on my card! That’s from the summer job I applied for. ...I’m just working as a waitress, nothing big...Mom, it’s fine. No one there is treating me like a big deal. I-...Mom, please don’t tell Dad...I know he’s worried, but I am perfectly fine here on my own. I don’t need an agent, I don’t need a personal trainer, I am fine. It’s only going to be three more months before the school year starts. I think I can take care of myself for that long. ...Thank you. ...Yeah, I love you too, Mom. Tell Dad I love him as well. ...Okay. Bye.” 

Cinder then knocks at the door, to which the champion calls her in. As she opens the door, she beckons Pyrrha out with her finger. Pyrrha comes out of her room, looking at Cinder with a confused expression. “Why do you have a costume on…?”

“It’s for your initiation.”

“Oh, that’s today?! I didn’t think it would be so soon.”

“Not to worry, it will go by quickly. Then, the real fun can begin…”

Cinder leads the two girls to the top floor, stopping just shy of the door. She motions for Pyrrha to wait outside while Emerald goes first. Pyrrha nods and waits in the hallway. Emerald is taken into the room, where candles are lit, the curtains are drawn, and the bed is properly prepared, handcuffs and all. She looks to the spread, and then to Cinder, her eyes full of bewilderment. “Uhhh...what do I do here?”

“First, you can go ahead and remove your top. Trust me, you won’t be needing it anymore.” Emerald hesitates a little from that comment, but does as she’s told. Cinder then motions for her to lay on the bed, which is so soft that Emerald nearly falls asleep. The clicks of fuzzy handcuffs being snapped onto her wrists pulls her out of her dosing. Emerald raises her head to protest, but is silenced by a single finger to her lips from Cinder. “Come now,” she coos to the thief,”we both know how much you want this. Normally, I would ask for your permission, but you know I won’t hurt you. Now, relax and enjoy your initiation.” 

With that, Cinder slides down to cuff Emerald’s ankles to the bed as well. She then walks to the nightstand, where the bowl of wine is waiting. She picks it up and brings it to the chained thief, holding its edge to her lips. Slowly, Emerald drinks some of it down, letting its sweet taste dance across her tongue and down her gullet. Cinder sets the bowl aside before tightening her glove. She leans down, locking Emerald’s lips into a kiss while her gloved hand traces over her womb, its symbol being imprinted onto her pelvis. She pulls away, smiling down at Emerald. “Welcome to my branch, Emerald…” Emerald blinks a bit, looking surprised.

“I...Is that it?” Cinder simply chuckles at this and stands back up tall. With a snap of her gloved hand, Emerald’s Mark glows red and sends her loins into a sudden fever pitch. Emerald’s eyes go wide as she quivers against the restraints, moaning at the sudden increase of sensitivity at her lower lips. She looks down at her glowing mark in surprise. “W-What did you do to-” She’s cut off by a sudden moan erupting from her own lips as Cinder merely pokes her lower lips.

“This is one of the many functions of the Mark.”, Cinder explains. “It increases one’s sex drive on a level unlike any aphrodisiac out there. It also gives its bearer a substantial boost in stamina to last through hours upon hours of pleasure. In other words...I get to do this to you.” Cinder then kneels to the foot of the bed, pulling out a box from under it. Inside is a magic wand vibrator along with some rope. Standing up with the items in hand, Cinder ties the vibrator to Emerald’s thigh so it presses right against her sensitive entrance. Despite Emerald’s quiet protests, worrying over her mind breaking, Cinder switches it to the highest setting and watches as Emerald screams out in unbridled pleasure. The mistress can’t help but laugh at the sight of her newest toy being submerged into the depths of debauchery, already dreaming of the nights she’ll have training her in private. However, she has one more person to mark right outside that door. 

Opening the door, Cinder steps out with the half-full bowl of wine, leaving Emerald to drown in her pleasure. Pyrrha’s face is a deep red after hearing Emerald’s cries, but Cinder isn’t fazed. She leads the champion to the second room in the top floor, where it has a much similar layout to the room Emerald is in. “Now then,” Cinder says while closing the door, “I think you know the drill by now.” Pyrrha nods and slowly strips out of her pajamas, much to Cinder’s delight. Despite how wonderfully chiseled all of the champion’s body is, Cinder notices a sense of hesitation in her usually proud movements. “Are you nervous?”

As Pyrrha steps out of the pile of clothing, she nervously scratches her head. “A-A little...I guess it’s just pre-show jitters…” Cinder doesn’t want to admit she was eavesdropping, but she can also tell that the discussion Pyrrha had with her mother is weighing heavily on her mind. Cinder sighs a bit and remembers Salem’s words. 

“Pyrrha, you don’t have to do this. I understand your dream of being a Huntress is important to you, and should you feel the need to leave-”

“N-No!” Pyrrha interjects, much to Cinder’s surprise. “I want to do this, Cinder! S-Sure, I’m nervous about being a stripper and getting a tattoo and having to learn about making love in such...w-whorish ways, but I still want to! I-If I’m being honest, this is not all new to me. I’ve been...repressing this side of me for some time now. Being a child prodigy isolates you in many ways, as I’ve told you before. T-There have been times where I had to share locker rooms with other Huntresses. It was bad enough only being a teenager around several older, nude women, but there was one time in particular that’s stuck to this side of me for years. I had forgotten something in my locker and went to get it, but I heard the shower running, along with a moan. I...I listened in on them, hearing them make love while I sat right at the other empty shower spot. The thought of them seeing me, the fear of me being caught in the act, a perfect angel to the masses having such a lewd secret...it was too much for me to resist. It was the first time I ever touched myself, and from then on, I would use my showers as cover to masturbate while the others went about dressing and chatting, staring at them through the curtain.”

Cinder is taken aback by this story. She stands there, stunned into silence as Pyrrha takes a deep breath before continuing to pour her heart out. “You see, Cinder, that’s why I did all of this. How can I be a Huntress if I’m afraid of this side of myself. I don’t want to fight and present for the people while having this shame, so please...teach me how to be free from it. I’ll do anything I have to in order to receive this mark.” Pyrrha stands absolute, ready for any kind of embarrassment to befall her, but Cinder simply walks up and uses the glove over her pelvis, placing the mark on her. Pyrrha looks to a smiling Cinder, confused by the abrupt ending.

“You’ve proven yourself more than worthy, Pyrrha. As much as I’d like to use the traditional means of welcoming you to the branch, I think I know another way that might seem more...enjoyable for your needs.”

\--------------------------------

“We have now arrived at our destination. Thank you for choosing Vale Railways and we hope you enjoy your stay. Please watch your step when you exit the train. Have a good day.”

Finally, the motion sickness madness is over. The girl has been hunched over the trashcan for nearly the entire trip, and can now be free of this steel prison of crying babies and armrest-hoggers. She struggles to reach up to the luggage hatch, but after a few jumps, finally gets it open...and has all her luggage crash on top of her. A child points and laughs. “I hate trains…” she thinks with a groan.

The girl stumbles out of the train, lugging behind the rollable suitcase with her as she flips her last backpack strap on. She looks around the bustling area, trying to figure out which exit goes where and what place to avoid. Normally, she’d try asking the locals about the place, but one look at someone biting into a whole lemon raw right in front of her greatly delays that idea. She wanders around aimlessly for a few minutes, bumping into strangers with quick apologies, until one trip up on her part sends her crashing into a lady in a black cocktail dress. She quickly gets up with a groan and then panics at the realization that the other lady is still on the floor. “O-Oh my gosh! I am SO sorry, miss!”, she stammers out while offering a hand.

She helps the lady up, who thankfully doesn’t look hurt. In fact, she seems quite happy about it. “Oh, it’s fine! Are you alright?” The girl quickly nods, still looking embarrassed about the whole ordeal. 

“I-I didn’t mean to, I’m really sorry!”

“Please, it’s okay! You don’t have to worry. Hm? Oh, are you a tourist?”

“Uh, s-something like that. I’m kinda trying to...apply to Beacon?”

“Ah, I see! I’ve applied there myself, so I can see if I can help you out.”

“Wait, what?! Y-You would really do that for me?! And here I thought I’d have to fake my way in..”

“Did you say something?”

“N-Nope! Uh, anyway, m-my name’s Jeanne. What’s yours?”

“I’m Pyrrha. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Jeanne.”

“Same here! So uh, I hope this doesn’t seem...desperate, but do you know a place I can stay at? Preferably...for free…?”

“Hm...I might know a place. I can take you there, if you’d like.”

“Seriously?! Yes! Thank you, Pyrrha! I’ve only just met you, and you’re already helping me a lot!”

“Aww, you’re quite welcome!”

“Really, if you ever need something from me, just ask! Uh, so long as it isn’t fighting. Or going on a train. Or an airship. Or, uh...okay, I know how bad this sounds, but-huh? Why are you laughing…?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, but you’re just so cute!”

“C-Cute in a good way or…?”

“A good way, Jeanne. A very good way. In fact, I think I know something you can do for me right now.”

“Oh, really? What’s that?”

“Follow me.” With that, Pyrrha takes Jeanne’s hand and leads her through the crowds, the blond struggling to keep up. The two arrive at the train station bathrooms, confusing Jeanne greatly. Once inside, Pyrrha locks the two into a single stall. “Here we are!” Jeanne looks around the interior of the blue stall, her confusion growing.

“Why did we come in he-...” Jeanne is stunned. The moment she looks back at Pyrrha, the top of her cocktail dress is pulled down to show her bare breasts. Jeanne stares in silence, her cheeks burning red. Her brain’s only function at the moment is to make extremely detailed descriptions of each breast, or rather that’s her lower brain’s doing. Either way, it takes Jeanne a good minute to try and squeak out a reply, only to be silenced by Pyrrha’s finger.

“Shh, keep your voice down. We don’t have much time.”, Pyrrha whispers as she sits on the toilet lid. She pulls the edge of her skirt up to reveal she’s been going completely commando this whole time, as well as a weird tattoo on her crotch. Pyrrha smiles up at the reddening Jeanne, noting the bulge in her jeans steadily growing larger. She spreads her pussy lips apart with two fingers before whispering; “Go ahead. It’s all yours.” Jeanne gulps dryly, trying to remember those things she saw people do in pornos. She frantically undoes her belt and jeans, losing all of her rationale to the point where she forgets one major detail;

She’s a grower.

“B-By the Gods…” Pyrrha whispers in shock. Her eyes go wide as she stares at Jeanne’s lengthening member. As she gets closer, the champion realizes all those inches are going to have to fit inside of her, and she’s a virgin! She doesn’t have a lot of time to regret it, however, as Jeanne shakily presses the tip between Pyrrha’s lower lips. The walk from the apartments to the train station all while being nude under the dress has already made Pyrrha wet enough that the Arc’s member can easily slip inside with feverish thrusts. Jeanne hilts herself inside of Pyrrha, feeling the tip press against her cervix. Jeanne feels herself fall into a lustful vigor, huffing out small grunts as she begins to pound away. Pyrrha covers her mouth with her hand, trying to silence her own moans as she gets unexpected spikes of pleasure from each strike at her womb’s entrance. Another side effect of the mark, perhaps? No matter the case, Pyrrha can’t believe the amount of lust filling her head right now. With each moan that slips past her mouth, another shot of adrenaline goes through her veins. The thought of someone catching her like this, the thought of her parents catching her like this; it feels so wrong to want to be caught, but Pyrrha can’t imagine anything more arousing. So much so that she can feel herself cum around Jeanne’s thrusting cock, silently squealing into her palm. This doesn’t stop Jeanne, however, who is so clouded by the euphoria of her first time that she can’t even see straight. Her thrusts keep her hilted into Pyrrha, making soft slaps echo through the bathroom, until she finally fills Pyrrha with weeks worth of stored cum deep inside of her, each shot like a sticky shotgun blast that clings to Pyrrha’s inner walls.

\---------------------------------

Cinder moans as she grinds on Emerald’s face, loving how her whimpers and squeals echo through her own inner walls. She checks the timer she has running on her scroll to see how long it’s been since she had Emerald tied up here; 20 minutes, minus the 5 it took to get Pyrrha ready, and the thief is still going strong. Just as she’s about to close it, however, she gets a message from Pyrrha. Opening it reveal an image of her with a cute blonde relaxing in a bathroom stall after what looks like a very warm creampie. Cinder’s smile grows wider at this sight, knowing she’s created a wonderful new student.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last part of this chapter was inspired by an image I saw from @Arrancon515 on Twitter. Give them a look, they've got great stuff!


	10. Reunion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! So sorry for the wait on this next chapter; the holidays were a busy time for me. I hope you all had a wonderful New Years! Here's to more chapters and stories to come!

On the night before Emerald and Pyrrha’s initiation, a silent hand of tension squeezes on the hearts of the Rose-Xiao Long household. As the family sits together at the dinner table, eating quietly, they can’t seem to look in one spot. Taiyang keeps her head low as she eats, occasionally glancing at Yang across the table after looking down at the scroll in her hand. Summer keeps her eyes on the time, going from the mounted analogue clock to the digital one on the stove. Yang is silently staring down at Taiyang and Summer, much like she has for days after Cinder left their home. Ruby gulps down her bite, looking between the three and noticing the awkwardness in the air. Setting her fork down so she can take a drink of her milk, she tries to think of an ice breaker for this dinner. 

“So...I managed to use my Semblance on Zwei!”

The three all look to Ruby, a bit surprised by the strange news. “That’s…nice, dear.”, Summer begins.

“Uh, yeah sis. You’ve been getting a lot better with your Semblance as of late.”

“Aww, thanks! I hope I can be as good as you guys someday.”

“I’m sure you will, Rubes. You know, Summer used to hate Semblance training the most.”

“No I didn’t!”

“Oh yes you did! I’d have to hear it all the time!”

“Kids, she’s just exaggerating. I wasn’t-” A sudden knock at the door interrupts the embarrassing story. Tai is the first to get out of her seat, followed by Summer while Ruby and Yang watch them both head for the front door. As Tai grips the doorknob, she looks to Summer and the two nod in solemn determination. With that, the door opens to two former friends; “Crowe! Raven! So glad you could make it!”

Crowe is the first to come into the house, sporting the same loose dress attire and raggety cape since she first attended Beacon. Following her is Raven, who left her mask behind, leaving her with her black and red dress, gauntlets, boots, and necklace. Both still have their weapons holstered on their belts, making them contrast against the cozy interior of the home. As Tai closes the door behind them, she spots the silver flask glistening in Crowe’s shirt and contains a sigh. Summer leads the Branwen twins over to the table, where Ruby and Yang are staring in amusement and vile contempt respectively. While Tai goes to make the twin’s plates, they sit down at the table. Crowe ruffles Ruby’s hair and says, “How you been, kiddo?”

“I’ve been awesome! I did edits on Crescent Rose so there isn’t as much recoil when I fire in handheld mode!”

Crowe nods a bit in approval, slinging one shoulder over the back of the chair. “Not bad, kid. How bout you, sunshine?” She turns her attention to the festering Yang. “How’s Ember Celica holding up?” This question pulls Yang from her impromptu staring contest with Raven, but only briefly.

“They’re fine.”

“I’m still surprised you got the recoil to work with you.”

“It’s less the recoil and more the kind of bullets I use.”

“Ah, I see. That’s gonna get you far in Beacon. You start soon, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Any friends you know coming with you?”

“A couple.”

“That’s...nice.” Crowe is beginning to realize that Yang is too absorbed into staring at Raven, her eyes changing from their usual lilac purple to the same shade of red her mother has. Raven doesn’t seem to care, adjusting her gauntlets to make sure they’re tight enough. Ruby looks nervously to Crowe, feeling afraid of how much tension is growing in the room. Crowe tries to give her a comforting smile, but a comment from Raven only strengthens this tension;

“Are we going to get this conversation over with?” This makes Yang raise an eyebrow.

“Why the rush? Eat with us, ‘mom.’ You’re probably tired after coming out here.”

“I’m not. I just portaled to the drunkard here.”

“Portaled?”

Crowe does her best to try and salvage the situation, “Uh, it’s her Semblance. Though, she can get pretty tired if she portals from a far away place, right sis?” She not-so subtly kicks Raven’s boot under the table, but Raven remains stone-faced.

“Please, coming from my camp to here is child’s play.” This makes Yang sit up straight in her chair.

“Oh, is that right? So you could’ve just come here whenever you wanted, huh, ‘Mom?’” 

Raven rolls her eyes at this. “And we’re starting with this...listen, girl, I could have used my portal to come to you, but you were living a happy life, so I didn’t bother.”

“Raven.”

“If you’re honestly still upset over me, then it goes to show just how weak you really are.”

“What did you just call me…?!”

“Raven! Shut! Up!”

“Weak. W-E-A-K. It seems like being raised by these dullards only made you worse of a human being than I thought. I’m honestly shocked I haven’t had to come and save you yet, which is good for me; as far as I’m aware, you’re just dead weight I need to-”

“Who wants dessert?!” Summer comes in, almost literally shoving a cake she and Ruby baked earlier that day between Raven and the currently flaming Yang. The room is silent, every member of the family looking to Summer, who sighs and sets down the cake on the table. “Alright...I believe it’s time I addressed the elephant in the room.” Summer brushes her bangs up a little as she stands up in front of the table. She gets a stern look on her face and points to Raven first. “You, keep the bluntness to a minimum. I will not hesitate to have you leave if you can’t be civil.” Raven rolls her eyes at this. “You,” she points to Crowe next, “the same applies, but also try to keep your sarcasm down. And for the love of the Gods, keep that flask in your shirt.” Crowe sighs a bit and shrugs. “You,” next is Ruby, “I know this is all pretty serious, but don’t worry. At the end of the day, Crowe and Raven are still family friends, regardless of blood relations or otherwise.” Ruby opens her mouth. “No, it doesn’t mean you automatically get double presents.” Ruby groans and nods. Summer then turns to the still fuming Yang. “You, I won’t make you sit out of this conversation. You’re about to be 18 soon, so you deserve to know the whole story. However, if you can’t keep a lid on your anger and keep your butt in that seat, I will send you back upstairs. That is a promise.” Yang sharply inhales through her nose and finally lets her hair return to normal. “And you,” Summer’s finger lands on Tai last, “Try not to get too defensive about what is brought up. The kids need to know, so we’re telling them everything. We can do this.” With that, she sits down and takes a deep breath. “Okay. Let’s get started.”

_Team STRC, a team brought together by fate. Leading the helm is Summer Rose, a well studied fighter and one of the few remaining Silver Eyed Warriors. Following her is Taiyang Xiao Long, a martial artist with a specialty in bad puns. Lastly, there are the mysterious and brutal Branwen Twins, Crowe and Raven. During their first year, their team has garnered a high reputation of both skill and troublemaking. The twin’s lack of knowledge of civilization lead to a lot of misunderstandings that Summer and Tai have to cover up. As these events occurred over their years of training, the team grows together and becomes even stronger as a unit. However, the team’s relationships between one another creates an underlying resentment between them all. Summer grows close to Tai over their initial alienation from the twins, but Tai gets infatuated by the mystery of Raven’s past. Crowe becomes interested in Summer’s innocence, much to Raven’s ire. Even though their mission was to learn how to kill Huntresses, Crowe finds herself forgetting that as the days go on and Raven is distracted from that mission by her teammates being friendly. It isn’t until after their graduation where their relationships become truly tested. Tai manages to get her chance to be with Raven, breaking Summer’s heart. While this would bring Summer and Crowe closer, it leads to Raven regretting her time growing fond of them. Once she has Yang, she realizes that her tribe could come for them all, so in what she believes to be a selfless move, she leaves them all behind to return to the tribe…_

“...and then I helped Tai raise Yang, ended up bedding Crowe to have Ruby and well, the rest is history.”

The room falls silent once more. The adults at the table sit with their arms crossed, deep in their personal reflections of the past. Ruby and Yang both look down at their laps, eyebrows furrowed in thought. For a while, the silence keeps the room in its hold until Ruby finally peeps out a question. “So...does that mean Raven hates us…?” Raven sighs deeply, as if she expected this question to come up.

“I don’t...It’s not that I hate either of you. I just don’t know you both enough to...well, care.” This comment makes everyone look at her harshly, especially Yang. Raven clears her throat, realizing she needs to pour more of her heart to them all. “Listen, I’m not going to pretend that what I did was good. Believe me, I hear that enough from this one over here.”

“Love you too, sis.”

“Leaving behind a child and a single mother is nothing to be proud of. I left behind friends and a family in order to rob, murder, and pillage. I’m a terrible person. The kind of person that shouldn’t have raised a child in the first place.” She looks to Yang, a solemn look in her eyes. “You never deserved a mother like me. I knew I was leaving you in much more capable hands, so I didn’t let it weigh me down. And yet...you’re still hurt by me. My apology probably doesn’t mean much to you now, but...I’m sorry.” Yang leans forward in her chair, taking in the bandit’s words. Summer and Tai look on at the two, both concerned for Yang and surprised by Raven’s honesty. Ruby tries to hug Yang, worried about her silence, but the blonde looks up to give her a small smile and calm her a bit. Then, she looks to Raven while trying to think of a response. Evidently, she can’t, and so she just quietly gets out of her chair, walks up to Raven, and hugs her.

“That’s for finally giving me an answer…” And then Yang sucker-punches the bandit down the floor. “And that’s for taking so long to give me one.” Summer is about to go off on Yang, but Raven interjects.

“Don’t. I’m fine.” She gets back up, surprising the blonde with a smile. “Not a bad punch...I was hoping you would try and kill me, but I’ll take it.”

“...You are one messed up lady.”

“You don’t know the half of it, kid.” 

Ruby sighs a bit in relief seeing the two reconcile...kind of. She looks to the others at the table, noticing they look relieved as well. She smiles, beginning to think that maybe her family is going to be alright. Summer clears her throat, addressing the two standing. “Well, good to know that you two have managed to more or less come to terms. Now then, onto some more...pressing matters.” Yang and Ruby both look confused as the adults begin to look solemn. Tai looks to Summer with skepticism, but it is quickly addressed by Crowe.

“You kids don’t have to stick around for this next part. It’s a lot...heavier than what we’ve talked about so far.” The sisters look to each other, exchanging nervous glances. Despite how serious this discussion sounds, the two feel curious about it. 

“What is this ‘new topic?’”, Yang asks. 

“Well...it concerns your enrollment at Beacon.” This gets Yang to sit down again.

“How…?”

“Okay, if we tell you, it’s gonna take us all night. Here’s the important stuff in a very, very condensed nutshell; The Gods of Light and Darkness are real and they cursed a lady named Salem with eternal life. That’s because Salem tried to go behind their backs to bring Ozma, aka Ozpin, back to life. Afterwards she tried to make a war happen, the Gods messed up humanity and made Remnant, Ozma got into a cycle of reincarnation to stop Salem, they became rulers but then broke up, and now Ozpin wants her dead. Any questions?”

“Uh...so does that mean Professor Ozpin is really old..?”

“Yep. But this isn’t about her, it’s about Salem. Speaking of, your mother here ran into her recently.”

“Thank you for the segway, Crowe. Now, when it comes to Salem, she seems like a good enough person. At least, not as evil as Ozpin makes her out to be.”

“Then again, you’ve only known her for a day or two. Ozpin knew her for years.”

“Time changes a person, Raven. We need to put that in consideration.”

“But how can we know for sure? It’s not like we can pop in for a visit all of the time without tipping Oz off.”

“Well, I can have her take over my body.”

“And how do we trust she won’t do anything to you or us when she does?”

“Well...that I don’t know. Can we really afford to wait for an ideal situation? For all we know, Ozpin could-”

“I have an idea!”

“Ruby?”

“Why don’t we just...test her?”

“...Test...her?”

“Yeah! You know, test to see what kind of person she is. We put her in a tricky situation and see how she reacts!”

“...That...that might actually be a good idea.”

“Seriously, Sum?”

“Yes, seriously!”

“You really are her mother…”

“In fact, I think I might know the perfect test for it.”

\-------------------------

“So, Hazel, do you have an update for me?”

“I do. Word is spreading through the Faunus communities about a supposed White Fang splinter group in Vale.”

“I see...Keep an ear out for these rumors. I might have a new recruitment idea for Cinder in the fu-Oh! I believe Summer is calling for me. I’m afraid I have to cut this short.”

“Not a problem. Farewell, My Queen.”

“Now, let’s have a look…” As Salem closes her eyes, she allows her soul to transfer into Summer’s body. In the brief instance of her regaining the feeling of a physical form, she hears a strange metallic sound. When her eyes open, she is met with the icy cold glare of Raven pointing a red blade to her neck.

**“Salem...tonight, you die!”**


	11. Skeptics

**“Salem...tonight, you die!”**

Raven pulls her sword back to try and lob off the possessed Summer’s head. Salem, quick to adapt to the sudden situation, ducks under the swinging blade, making her land on her hands and knees. Raven is not willing to let her rest, however, and kicks Salem in the side to make her roll into a tree. A dull pain rings through her body, making her realize she’s never fought in a Huntress’ body before. As she gets back up to her feet, Raven runs up to swing at her again, prompting a last-second dodge that leaves a small cut on her cheek. Salem can feel the rush of adrenaline pumping through her veins as Summer’s blood trickles down her cheek. It’s been years since she’s ever been in danger for her life, only it isn’t just her life that’s in danger. If she can’t figure out how to use Aura in time, Raven could kill Summer’s body and leave her trapped in Salem’s original body, and that isn’t even accounting for what might happen to Salem’s own soul. That is the least of her worries, for Raven is slowly approaching with her blade at the ready.

“What are you doing?!”, Salem shouts, hoping to reason with Raven. “You try to kill me, and you risk losing Summer, too!”

Raven’s piercing glare strikes through Salem’s very soul, resolute in her goal. “We’re willing to take the sacrifice to end you.”

“We’re?”

Just as Salem questions that, Crowe rushes out from the treeline to slam her fist into her cheek, sending her careening to the ground. Salem struggles to push herself back up, a sudden boot to the face from Taiyang makes her stumble to her back. Clutching her now broken nose, Salem looks up as Crowe and Raven point their blades at her. Looking up at their hateful glares, Salem sighs. “Well then...I should have seen this coming. If you are truly prepared to strike me down, do it now. I only ask that you try and find Summer. She might be terrified to suddenly be stuck in my body.” Salem camly closes her eyes, anticipating the end to come…

The last thing she hears is the sounds of blades being sheathed before Crowe says; “All we needed to hear.” Salem opens her eyes in shock, seeing the three of them dropping their hateful glares. Crowe and Tai are even smiling. Confused, Salem sits up. 

“W-Wait, what is this? You...you aren’t going to kill me?”

“Nope!” A sudden cheery voice shouts out from the treeline. Ruby comes out with Yang, pushing a button on a camera to stop its recording. “This was all a test to see if you’re a good person!”

“A test..? Wait, did Summer plan this?”

“That’s right. This was her way of proving we could trust you, and well, it worked. For the most part, we can trust you.”

Salem looks down, focusing on Summer’s hands. The more she thinks about this “test,” the more she begins to smile. She looks up to the family, feeling truly touched and impressed by this family. It seems like her influence hasn’t ruined their relationship like she feared it did. “Well,” Salem says while getting herself back up, “this is a surprise to be sure, but it’s quite a pleasant one...despite the broken nose.” Tai chuckles a bit, scratching the back of her head.

“Yeah, sorry about that...So, once Summer’s healed up, maybe we can talk more about this whole...branch thing.”

“Sounds like a plan…”

\-----------------------------------

A day or two later, and Summer managed to get her nose fixed up. In the meantime, Crowe explains in full about the Gods, Relics, and Maidens to Ruby and Yang. The two sisters seem more excited about the prospect of magic than concerned about the lies and deceit. Raven didn’t stick around for long during the days, but would come back during the night for the sake of discussion about Salem’s plans. When the day comes, Summer and her team set up in the living room for a talk with Salem. Summer rubs her Mark through her clothes, and within seconds, Salem arrives in her body. “Another test, is it?”

“Not this time. We can trust you to talk through Summer, but that doesn’t mean we can completely be sure about your little goal.”

“I see. Well, ask away. I assume Summer has told you the basics?”

“Yeah, about this whole sex cult thing. What we want to know is how exactly you plan on getting this whole ‘Mark’ thing through the kingdoms. The kingdoms are all ruled by the same people Ozpin trusts and tells about you. What makes you think they won’t link this back to you?”

“Truth be told, Crowe, I have no guarantees that they won’t figure me out. Right now, all of my members are in each kingdom, starting from the lower, seedier sections. My plan isn’t to take over the world so I may rule, but to make society more...harmonious. I could always get a politician to serve me and make my act legal, but that would be pointless. The best way to make something big is to introduce it into everyday life, after all. Once enough people are either viewing or part of my kingdom, they will be bastions of my word. They will love openly not because I command it, but because they will feel no inhibitions towards it. What is considered something to do behind closed doors soon becomes a common thing to see in the open. When it becomes common, more people will do it outside of our circle before joining us. Our influence grows, our name becomes popular, our marks make it perfectly safe, and at last, we will be big enough to have a meeting with those in charge. At least, that’s what I hope will happen.”

“...Huh. You really thought this out, didn’t you?”

“I’ve had many years to think through the faults of humanity. I know how you all act more than you do.”

“Fair enough. I take it now you want us to join you?”

“You can if you wish. I do understand your closeness with Ozma makes it difficult.”

“Well, this is gonna be something we’ll have to talk about ourselves. We’ll call you back.”

“As you wish...So, how did it go?”

“Not badly. Her ideas are a little...extreme-”

“You mean condescending.”

“-but the worst she can do is start a nudist colony. Question is if we should join in.”

“Oh! Well, my experience there was pretty nice, minus the drab castle. Also the Marks do some wonderful things like apparently protecting from STD’s, giving increased stamina, and even making you grow-”

“Okay! Honey, I love you, but please don’t go into details.”

“Still as prudish as ever, huh, Tai?”

“I mean, do you imagine ladies growing…’you know’s’ randomly?”

“Maybe if I’m drunk.”

“But you’re alway-you know what, nevermind.”

“Hm...I think I might be able to get some willing test subjects for this. I can bring in weaker members of my tribe to go through this ‘Mark’ business. We can send them in and see how it goes.”

“Quite the Oz take on going through this, eh, sis?”

“Shut it.”

“You know I’m right.”

“Hmph…”

“Look, Summer already got the Mark. Why don’t we send her to where the Vale branch is and have her act as...a spy? She can see things going on and tell us what happens in it.”

“Not a bad plan, Tai! Plus, it will give Raven more time with Yang!”

“Bold to assume I’ll stay here much longer.”

“Raven.”

“Okay, fine! I’ll figure something out. Maybe take her with me or something.”

“We’ll talk about that part more later. For now, let’s get Summer set up with a boat to Vale.”

\----------------------------

One boat trip and a painful taxi ride later, Summer arrives at the hotel. Even if she’s worried about the girls being alone with Raven, finding out how Salem’s group works is her biggest priority. As she opens the door, she notices no one at the front desk. She heads inside, closing the door behind her, and heads up the stairs to the first floor. At the first door, she can already hear moaning coming from behind it. Unsure if that’s Cinder or not, she tries knocking on it. The moaning stops, footsteps taking their place. The door opens to a nude Pyrrha. “Checking on us Cin-Oh! Ah, w-who are you?!”

Summer quickly tries to calm the girl. “Not to worry! I know Cinder and I’m just looking for her.” As a show of her intentions, she tugs down the hem of her skirt to show her mark underneath. Pyrrha relaxes a bit, but still seems curious of the older woman.

“O-Oh... Are you one of her other members?”

“Something like that. Say, do I know you from somewhere?”

“I, um…”

“Yeah, you’re the young lady on the cereal boxes!”

“...Yes, that is who I am.” Why is that the only thing I’m known for?, Pyrrha thinks to herself. “Anyway, if you’re looking for Cinder, she’s-”

“Right behind you.”

Summer and Pyrrha both gasp in shock as Cinder stands in front of them both, grinning at Summer in particular. She looks to Pyrrha first. “You go back to helping Jeanne. I can handle this.” Pyrrha nods and goes back inside the room. “As for you,” Cinder continues as she looks back to Summer, “I didn’t expect you to come here so soon. It’s barely been a week since I left.”

“Well, discussion about Salem’s actions went...faster than expected. I managed to find some free time to get a little bit of experience here...whatever ‘here’ is.”

“Either way, I welcome you. Sorry for not being at the front; I was just helping out two of our newest members.” As Cinder makes that comment, she heads down the hall, prompting Summer to follow. She opens another door to show two more unfamiliar faces currently clutching each other’s bodies as they make out. One had a single pink strand of hair in a sea of black, while the other was a ginger with much more generous proportions than her slimmer lover. “These are Nora and Rin,” Cinder comments, “Jeanne and Pyrrha found them alone in an alleyway next to the train station. They’re orphans, so we gave them a home here.”

“I...see…” Even if they’re being watched, the couple wastes no time in tearing each other’s clothes apart, hungry for their bodies. Nora mumbles out heated comments about Rin’s lean, muscular figure, while Rin herself is more silent and focused on her hands exploring every inch Nora has presented. Rin grips Nora’s ass tightly, letting her fingers sink in as deep as they can while watching Nora writhe in front of her. The two share another sloppy kiss as Rin lifts Nora up by her seat to carelessly impale her on her own cock, making Nora break the kiss to moan deeply. Summer tugs on her cloak’s button, suddenly feeling like it’s heating her up more than she likes. Seeing those two in that position was bringing back memories of when she first made love to Crowe…

Cinder’s chuckle breaks her from this memory. “If you think these two are fun to watch, you should see me and Emerald.”

“Who?”

“My newest pet. Goodness, the things I can’t wait to do to her. Her eyes are practically begging for me to break her every time we touch…”

“By the Gods, how did you get so...confident?”

“I’m as surprised as you are. I didn’t think I was made for this role at all, but once I started, everything just clicked. All my teaching finally came to use and I couldn’t be-”

“WOULD YOU TWO SHUT UP?!” Nora suddenly shouts, currently still with Rin inside of her. She puts her hands against her hips in a stubborn manner. “If you haven’t noticed, Rin and I are **trying** to celebrate finally getting ‘together-together,’ and I’d be a **lot** more enjoyable without you two talking over it!”

Cinder merely chuckles again. “My mistake! We’ll leave you two to your fun!” She takes Summer up to the top floor using the elevator, continuing the conversation as they go. “As I was saying, it gets a lot more natural when you put it into practice. Which reminds me, have you come to finally start your training as well?”

“Something like that. I’m just here to make sure the others can be safe while joining.”

“Others?”

“My wife and teammates.” 

“Ah, I understand. Well, unfortunately, you’ve come to the wrong person. I run a branch of Salem’s order, but I have my own mark to give.” Cinder holds up her hand, still wearing the white glove adorned with the smaller eye symbol. “You and I have Salem’s Mark, you do not have mine. Therefore, I cannot train you, since you don’t belong to me.”

“Huh? But what’s the difference? And I thought I was supposed to come here to help you!”

“You were to come here when you were ready. Now, we can proceed with making you a real member by sending you to the Queen herself.” Summer is at a loss; she didn’t think there would be a hierarchy like this when it came to her learning how to have sex...again. She had the Mark, so she thought all that was left was to join the Branch. Why is it now that she needs to be trained in a new location? Well, at the very least, all she has to do is report this to her team and go from there. Cinder, seeing the slight frustration in Summer’s eyes, comes closer. “I take it this throws a monkey wrench in your plans?”

Summer nods. “I thought I would only be gone a week or two. The trip combined with the training would only make it longer.”

“Truth be told, it would’ve taken longer than a week or two for me to train you. I’ve only just started the basics with the others. Perhaps there’s something I can do to help?”

“No, it’s fine. I’ll just call Tai and let her kn-” Summer is stopped by Cinder’s hand slowly cupping her cheek. 

“I think you know what I actually mean by that.” Cinder leans up to plant a kiss on Summer’s lips, slowly walking them both backwards to the bed. Summer feels its foot press against her thighs, prompting her to sit. Cinder climbs on Summer’s lap with a smile, looking down upon the Huntress. “You know, this reminds me of something. I never got to do what you asked of me.” Summer looks confused at this, making Cinder chuckle again. “You don’t remember?” She then leans in to whisper against Summer’s ear;

“You asked me to seduce you.”

With that, Cinder sticks out the tip of her tongue to trace it around the outer shell of Summer’s ear, feeling her shudder underneath her. She then leaves a trail going from Summer’s ear to her mouth, pressing her tongue inside. As the two kiss, Cinder can feel that small bit of regret pop into her head once more. Ella is awake, realizing how bad it would be if Summer’s children knew about this. Cinder, however, is quick to quiet the girl’s concerns, noting how the children wouldn’t need to know a thing about this. Summer is a fully grown woman; she can make the choice to be loved by whomever she wants, and Cinder is willing to oblige. Cinder swirls her tongue around Summer’s own, entertained by the older woman’s lack of experience. Training with Salem is exactly what she’ll need to liven her skills back up. 

While the kiss goes on, Cinder’s hands work deftly and delicately to strip Summer with ease. The cloak and corset are easy enough, but down at the waist will be more difficult at this position. Once the Huntress’ bra is loose, Cinder pulls back while holding it to gently push Summer on her back. She tosses the bra aside and lays down on Summer, feeling her robed chest press against Summer’s bare mounds. She casts her gaze into those aged silver orbs while slowly reaching down to rub the crotch of her panties, waiting for the moment they light up in ecstasy. Summer gasps as Cinder rubs, beginning to feel her loins tense in anticipation. Cinder moves her head down to Summer’s breasts, tracing her tongue around one of their areola before taking the entire nipple into her mouth. Summer moans and bites her lip, her thighs tightening around Cinder’s hand. In truth, Summer has fantasized about the night she was marked, touching herself to the memory in secret, so to be under this younger woman’s gaze again is rekindling the flames of her passion. 

After a minute of this, Cinder stops and climbs off of Summer with a smile. Then, after letting her black robe fall off her shoulders, she traces her finger around the outer circle of her Mark, causing it to glow. Cinder clenches her teeth as that familiar pain shoots through her body, her legs shaking from her beginning metamorphosis. Summer watches with bated breath as Cinder’s clitorus transforms into a cock and balls once more, leaving her slightly fatigued. “There we go…” Cinder comments as she stares down at her new phallus. “I take it this is what you wanted, right?” Summer gulps and quickly nods, feeling as giddy as when Crowe first laid her. Cinder smiles and walks over, grabbing the edges of Summer’s skirt and pulling them away, along with her panties. Summer can’t believe how good this girl is. Cinder decides not to keep the silver eyed fox waiting and promptly lines up her new cock to Summer’s entrance, pushing it in slowly in order to savor the look of twisted delight on Summer’s face. 

Cinder holds up Summer’s legs as she begins to thrust in and out of her, loving the way her tits bounce each time. Her cock still remembers the insides of Summer well, finding every spot to fill and rub against within seconds to send Summer over the moon. Summer clutches the sheets of the bed, gasping and moaning as she’s being railed. Cinder’s eyes trace over every small detail of Summer’s body as it glistens with a slightly sweaty sheen. Her hips begin to move faster on their own, her body craving more of Summer’s own body the more she watches it write and shake from her thrusts. Cinder’s moans become harsh grunts as she focuses on pounding this mother with a burning desire. She hasn’t had the chance to go all out on her since her initiation, so now was as good as a time as ever. Summer’s eyes blur from the intensity, momentarily seeing Cinder as Crowe with alluring yellow eyes. As the bed creaks under them, Cinder lets out a loud groan while slamming in one final time, flooding Summer’s insides with her seed. Summer moans out Crowe’s name, cumming along with Cinder as her back lifts off the bed. As Cinder’s cock finally ends its deposit, she lays on top of Summer with a chuckle, kissing her cheek. “Oh, I can’t wait for you to get fully trained...You, and this ‘Crowe’ you speak of…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Ugh, finally! I thought they'd never leave!"
> 
> "I'm surprised you could hear them over your own moaning."
> 
> "I'm surprised you're still hard!"
> 
> "Well, it's hard not to when I'm holding you nude in my lap...also the weird symbol on my crotch is keeping me aroused."
> 
> "You too, huh? Good, cuz I've got years of this pent up, and I'm not stopping until we BOTH drop!"
> 
> "I wouldn't have it any other way."
> 
> "Hehe! Boop~!"


	12. Training

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm very sorry to keep you all waiting 2 months for the next chapter, but here it is! I'm not done with this series for a long shot, so expect more Mark of Salem to come this 2021!

In the dead of night, Summer stands alone atop the roof. The lights of the kingdom still shine towards the outskirts, hiding the night sky with their glow. Up to the cliffs are Beacon’s lights; the sight of them filling Summer with a sense of nostalgia. That school was her home for the longest time; all the friends she made, the adventures she had, each and every memory filling her heart with a warm sensation. Yet, as she stands there, looking out to those familiar green orbs, she can’t help but wonder if what she’s doing is truly worth it in the end. Even before her time there, she has spent years knowing of the evils of Grimm and learning about the terrors of the world, and now she’s about to try saving the world through...sex. Even with all the information about Remnant’s true origins and the past of Ozpin, it all seems so surreal to her. Her mind may not be fully at ease, but deep down, she has found the resolve to carry through. 

If it means a brighter future for her children, Summer will do anything. Even try to kill what can’t be killed, or in this case, make love to it.

The sound of large wings flapping through the air takes her attention away from Beacon and to the skies. She can spot the bone faceplate approaching, sticking out like an ominous shooting star. The Hound arrives, landing down next to Summer with its mutated wings spread up to stretch them out after a long flight. It growls softly in a low tone, taking in deep breaths as its throat throbs. It looks up to Summer, slowly opening its monstrous maw, black mist oozing out of it. “Come…”

\--------------------------

Despite how admittedly terrifying the flight was, Summer feels a little attached to this Hound creature. It leads her through the familiar castle, presumably back to the throne room. As it slinks through the large double doors, Summer pushes one of them open to enter after it. The first thing she spots is how much of Salem’s pale body contrasts against the castle’s interior. 

And then she realizes what she’s looking at, causing her to blush.

On the edge of the long table pointing to the doorway sits Salem, as bare as bone. The black veins that decorated her face do extend across her entire body, outlining her alluring curves. Strangely enough, her nipples don’t seem to have much contrast with the rest of her body-a slightly darker shade of white in comparison-and if there is any pubic hair, Summer can’t see it. Not that she’s staring, of course. Salem, however, is letting her eyes burn themselves into Summer’s body, as if she can see through Summer’s outfit. The Hound walks up to Salem’s side to receive pets from the Queen. “Hello, Summer.” She crosses one leg over the other slowly; a simple motion that somehow makes the Huntress’ heart skip a beat. “I take it you had a nice flight?”

“Ah...s-something like that”

“Good...Are you ready to begin your training?”

“...It seems like you are.”

“Quite the astute observation. Though, you should leave your modesty...and your clothes by the door there. For as long as you’re here, there will be nothing we can hide from each other.”

Heaving a sigh, Summer begins to strip down. Despite expecting this, she wasn’t looking forward to it all the same. The only other person who’s ever seen her naked before all of this was Crowe, so to have it shown off so many times is difficult to adjust to. Salem doesn’t mind this at all, however, smiling the whole time while she watches her strip. Summer forces her fists to her sides, knowing that the sooner she’s used to having eyes on her, the faster this will go. Salem chuckles lightly at this notion, switching legs again. “I’m surprised you’re so prudish. I figured the life of a Huntress would keep you from those feelings.”

Summer looks away. “That’s different. Being a Huntress means learning to quell your negative emotions. You should know how the Grimm work; I mean you have one as a pet.” She motions to the softly growling Hound, who receives chin scratches from Salem. His tail slaps against the floor with excitement. “We train to deal with high stress situations, not being hookers.”

“Oh come now, Summer, you’re overexaggerating this a little.” Salem takes a break from petting the Hound to stand up. “What I mean is that you’ve stared death in the face so many times by now, and yet you’re afraid to show a little skin? That’s what I don’t understand here.”

“Well...I can’t speak for everyone, but I know that when it comes to me, I know I have to uphold a standard. The next generation looks up to me, and how can I do that if I’m being some kind of...secret slut?” This makes Salem tap her chin a bit. She closes her eyes, sitting back down on the table while doing so. 

“Hm...You remember how I told you I was a mother once?” Summer raises an eyebrow and nods. “You see...you made me realize I used to think in the same way. It’s been so many years since I locked myself off from society that I’ve grown quite cold to its norms. I admit this is a fault of mine, but that’s why I love having you all to help me remember that humanity.”

“Your point being…?”

“My point, Summer,” Salem says while getting up again, “is that we can help each other through this.” She walks up behind Summer, pressing her chest slightly against Summer’s back. “You can help me understand humanity better…” Summer gasps as Salem’s chilled hands cup her breasts, leaving goosebumps to crawl all over them. “And I can help you be more comfortable in your birthday suit. Sounds like a fair trade, right?” Summer gulps down a bit nervously. Good intentions or not, Salem is too good at sounding like a devil.

“J-Just get it over with…” 

To Summer’s surprise, Salem lets her go and walks around to face her yet again. “Aw, come now, we can’t have you feeling like that! Here, how about we start by setting a pace? Think of it like a...personal training regime.” 

“Is that right? Well, where should we start?”

“Where would you like to start?”

“Anything that doesn’t involve me having to fuck.”

“Aw, a little boring, but I can oblige. Let’s start at the basics, then.”

\------------------------------

Summer never thought she would go back to school in her forties, but here she is, sitting at a chair, still nude, while Salem, also nude, is presenting in front of a chalkboard of all things. On it, “The Basics” is written in white chalk. “Now then,” Salem starts, “when it comes to what we do here, I’m sure you’re more than familiar with most of it, so let’s start with what you do know first.” Using red chalk, Salem draws a copy of The Mark. “Can you tell me what this is?”

Summer is regretting asking for this. She feels so old. “It’s...the Mark. Salem, please don’t patronize me.”

“Oh come on, humor me a little?”

“...”

“Ah...in any case, you’re right. You already know what the Mark is, what it does, and why we give it to people. However, it seems like you’re lacking in what we consider to be the real basics of this job.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, you know how to make love, but you don’t know how to fuck.”

“...There’s a difference?”

“Oh, like you wouldn’t believe, Summer. From different positions, to handjobs, to BDSM, there are many ways to fuck. And I’m going to help you master all of them.”

“This...does not sound easy.”

“Not to worry, I have a system in place. You see, you’re about to learn a little bit of the BDSM lifestyle by being my submissive, or sub for short, while you’re here.”

“So I’m your...slave?” 

“No! Heavens no! That’s the beauty of a submissive, Summer. While the dominant might be in control on the surface, it’s really the submissive who controls everything. You choose what I can and can’t do to you, and with a simple safe word, you can stop everything on a dime. No questions asked.”

“Huh...how do you know about all of this?”

“Tyriana taught me. I was her submissive for a while.”

“Huh…”

“Now, before we get to the real fun, I’m going to need to know that safe word. It can be anything you want.”

“...It will be-”

\---------------------------------------

“Ruby!”

“Wha-” Just as the red Huntress-to-be turns her head, Yang manages to land a punch right between her eyes. Ruby stumbles back, gripping her face. 

“First rule of combat, Ruby; Always stay focused!”

“I know that, Yang! It’s not fair that you can use your weapons when I can’t! That really hurt!”

“You can’t always expect a fair fight, Ruby! Besides, you’ll be able to keep up with that semblance of yours!”

“Ugh, fine!” Putting up her fists again, Ruby watches as Yang lunches forward to go another punch. This time, Ruby ducks under it to go for an uppercut, but falls right into Yang’s ploy. As Yang’s punch misses, her gauntlet fires off a kinetic bullet, making the blonde spin on her feet and elbow Ruby in the back of her head. The little sister, enraged by the unfair advantage, ops to push off the ground in a flurry of rose petals to tackle Yang. Ruby misses by a long shot, however, and crashes into a far off tree. Yang scratches the back of her head, starting to feel a little bad about the training idea.

“Ah...Okay, let’s call it here for now on the training.”

Ruby peels herself off the tree and sits against it with a groan. “I wish school would start again...just so I don’t have to train with Baron von Punchenstien all day.”

Yang chuckles at the joke and sits down next to Ruby. “It’s only gonna get harder at Signal, you know! Also, not a bad joke name, but needs work.”

“Hmph...Hey, are you still going to Beacon?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“I mean...you remember what Mom and everyone else said about Ozpin, right?”

“Hey, he may be a liar, but his school doesn’t speak for him. If I can get trained to be a Huntress up there, it’ll all be worth it. Going on adventures, traveling across Remnant, fighting monsters; no amount of lies and fairytales can stop my dream!”

“Heh, you’ve got a point there! I kinda wish I could go to Beacon…”

“All in due time, sis.”

“I guess so. It’s just that Mom and everyone else made it sound so fun. Hey, speaking of Mom, where do you think she is right now?”

“Probably doing some sleuthing about Salem’s “branch” or whatever it is.”

“Yeah, but like, what does Salem do?”

“She-...Huh. You’re right, we never did get to know her plan on saving the world or whatever.”

“Should we ask them?”

“Ruby, get real. They never told us about the whole love...square-thing until recently. We aren’t gonna hear a word from them about this.”

“I guess you’re right on that...but what about Cinder? She knows, right? We can ask her!”

“Yeah, except we don’t have her number.”

“Oh yeah…”

“But...maybe we can visit her. Remember that Open House for Beacon I’m going to next week?”

“Yeah?”

“I can take three people with me. I was gonna take you regardless, but if you and I go, we can try and find Cinder while we visit!”

“Yang, that’s a great idea! Maybe we’ll even see Mom there, too!”

“Yep! Boy, will she be surprised to see us!”

\---------------------------------

Salem taps her chin. “Ruby, huh? That has a nice ring to it...does it have any meaning?”

“My daughter.”

“Oh! I see. Well either way, it’s perfect. Now then, how about we begin your first training session?”

“And what would that be?”

“Whatever you choose.”

Summer leans back in her chair, unsure of what to do with all of this new choice. She never really thought about what she likes in terms of sex, save for that one time with Crowe. She decides to use that as a basis. “Hm...well...maybe we could start...traditional?”

“Missionary?”

“What?”

“The position. You on your back, me above you, and I’m fucking you. Is that it?”

“Ah, n-not quite…”

“Oh?”

Summer blushes as she remembers that night, trying her best to explain it. “You see, I-I was on my back, but Crowe, she...she did in a way that was...deep...I felt my legs above my head and-”

“Oh, a mating press!”

“Is that what it’s called?”

“Indeed. I didn’t think you would’ve had such a rough position for your first time.”

“We were young! We were drunk! I-I was more buzzed, actually, and-” Salem just laughs, making Summer sigh in frustration. She thought she escaped all this awkwardness after Beacon...Salem then moves up closer, squatting down in front of Summer to pinch her chin and make them meet eyes. 

“You are so adorable…” Summer looks down, but Salem moves her head down to catch her eyes again. “Don’t be ashamed of the glory days, my dear...I’d be lying if I didn’t used to hate my own young times myself...But that’s besides the point. Now tell me, do you want it to feel real...or do you want me to introduce you to toys?” Summer can feel her blush going down her neck. If Cinder could grow a cock from her mark, then Salem, the one who made the marks...She can feel herself drooling and as she reaches to wipe it off, Salem holds her wrist and leans in closer, sticking out her tongue. Her white appendage drags itself slowly over Summer’s chin, collecting her dribble in order to slip it back in her mouth with a kiss. Summer can feel a shiver run down her spine as Salem examines every inch of her mouth; teeth, the roof, and especially her own tongue. The witch’s fingers comb through Summer’s hair, pulling her bun and braids loose. As they separate, a trail of saliva briefly connects the two before Salem chuckles at Summer’s heated expression. “I believe I asked you a question, my dear…”

Salem presses her thumb against the pad of Summer’s hanging tongue, rubbing it before pushing it back into her mouth softly. Summer gulps again, still tasting Salem in her mouth. “I...N-Natural…”

Salem’s smile only gets wider. “Excellent choice.”

Salem then scoops the Huntress in her arms, locking lips with her once more as she walks out of the makeshift classroom. Summer moans with a quivering voice as Salem sinks her fingers into her toned cheeks, her fingertips grazing her tightest crevice ever so slightly. Salem takes the two into a lavish bedroom belonging to herself and lays Summer on it’s crimson sheets. Not wanting to keep the dripping Huntress waiting, Salem works her magic. She closes her eyes, red light flowing down from the veins on her face to her crotch. Her clit glows in that very same light, and soon begins to undergo the same metamorphosis as Cinder, yet Salem seems to feel nothing. Her cock stood erect, free of the red light; A blackened head surrounded by white. It looks human, surprising Summer a bit. Salem grips her new cock at the base, shivering in delight at its sensitivity. “It’s been too long since I’ve done this...I get to break in a new toy.” Salem struts over to the bed, grabbing Summer’s ankles to pull them to her head. Summer wraps her arms around the backs of her own knees with a shaky grip, her eyes glued to the stiff cock getting closer. She climbs up onto the bed, hovering over Summer with an excited smile. “Are you ready, Summer?” As the Huntress tries to open her shaky lips, Salem presses her thumb against them. “No, don’t answer. I can tell already.” 

Salem suddenly slams her hips down against Summer’s thighs, plunging her cock as deep as it can go, drawing a loud gasp from the Huntress below her.

“You’ve been ready for a long time.”

Salem slowly drags her cock out of Summer, drawing out a quivering moan from her, which then becomes a loud gasp again after Salem slams back in. The witch repeats this motion, slowly breaking Summer into the rough thrusts. The head of her cock strikes against Summer’s cervix over and over again, the usually painful experience sending giant sparks of pleasure through her body. Summer’s eyes are wide and slowly building tears from the intensity, moaning through her teeth. Salem watches Summer’s reactions with a wide smile, leaning down to press their foreheads together and lock eyes. In between moans and grunts, Salem speaks to the moaning Summer;

“You’re such a good whore, aren’t you? You dreamed about this for so long, I can feel it! Your team and your family held you back all this time! You want to get slutty! You want to be fucked! You gave up so much of your own-mmph-happiness, and this is your reward!” At the utterance of “reward,” Salem speeds up her thrusts, slamming hard and fast into Summer’s pussy. Summer’s moans morph into pleasure-spiked gasps as she struggles to keep up with the immense lust taking her body over. The two grip the sheets as their animalistic sounds fill the room; Salem’s heavy balls smacking against Summer’s ass going along with their grunting and panting. Their chests press together as their lips make a sloppy connection to one another, tongues and moans being traded between them.

Summer’s weeping silver eyes lock with the burning void of Salem’s own. In the back of her lust-clouded mind, she begins to realize the dangers of this woman; it wasn’t just the Grimm of the forgotten magic that made her a threat, no, but the temptation. Once she has someone hooked in with her words, it’s all downhill from there. The Mark is just a courtesy, she can already look past humanity’s front to see their true desire. For Summer, this seemingly endless pounding is that desire. Unending pleasure, a chance to give up her leadership to be humbled, to be bred.

Salem knows this, she knows this, so why pretend it doesn’t exist? It’s much easier to accept it.

As both of them get closer to their climax, Salem slows her thrusts down slightly to deliver the hardest thrust of the night, pushing into Summer’s womb and pumping her full of her hot seed. Summer’s eyes roll back as her mouth hangs open in a freeze frame of complete ecstasy, her pussy clamping down on the still-thrusting cock filling her up. The two relax into a heap on the bed, Summer’s sweating body being cooled by Salem’s white skin. The witch brushes Summer’s bangs out of her face to plant a kiss on her forehead. “Have fun, my dear?” Summer weakly tries to respond, only to squeak with a hoarse voice. Salem chuckles. “I’ll take that as a yes…”

\---------------------------

The next day, Summer wakes up to a familiar smell; pancakes with bacon and eggs. A Mother’s Day classic for her, only it isn’t Mother’s Day, and she’s not in her own bed. Even with the Mark’s magic somehow keeping her womb empty, she could still feel the heat of Salem inside of her, like a phantom’s kiss. She looks down under the covers to see her Mark softly glowing on her skin. Salem comes into her peripheral view, making her look up towards her. In the witch’s hand is a tray with the breakfast items she smelled before. “Good morning, my dear.” 

“It’s...morning?”

“I know it’s hard to tell, but yes. I’ve made you breakfast!”

“I can see that much. Uh, where’s the drink?” After setting the tray down on Summer’s lap, Salem simply holds up one of her own breasts. Summer looks perturbed by this. “You...want me to breastfeed…?”

“I figured I could get you used to my fluids, since you’ll be having them for a while. Plus, it’s an endless tap!”

“...You-”

“Before you ask, no, it won’t turn you into a Grimm.”

“Oh...but-”

“Or curse you. Or kill you. Or even taste bad. The others say it’s quite nice, actually.”

“Uh huh…”

“Hey, if you don’t want any, I can just go get something else.”

“I’d like that...but before you go, what’s with my mark...glowing?”

“Oh, good question! You see, it’s currently repairing your cervix and draining all the cum I loaded you with. It rewinds the clock to before you even had your first time.”

“That so? I see...that’s a little...unnatural, but helpful, I suppose.”

“Indeed. Now, would you like orange juice, milk, water, spiders, soda-”

“Spiders?”

“Spiders it is!”

“Wait, I-”

“Ha! I tease, Summer! I’ll get you some water, then.”

\----------------------

After breakfast, Summer is led to a large mirror standing in front of a small table. Salem comes up behind her, holding a black ink marker in her hand. “Alright, this will be your...primary exercise for a while. Stand still.” Salem locks her eyes onto Summer’s reflection, popping off the cap of the pen with her thumb. She starts to write on herself, using the mirror to make it readable to Summer. It seems effortless to the witch, making Summer wonder how many times she’s done this before. Once she’s done writing on her chest and stomach, she then starts writing on Summer in the same way. The cold ink makes her skin break out in goosebumps, and the words themselves make her blush. Salem goes from Summer’s chest to her belly, and then to her cheek, her thighs, and even her rear. Summer can’t tell what all of this is for. Once the pen is capped and back on the table, Salem begins to explain;

“Now I know you probably expect me to be commanding, but that isn’t the point of this training. It’s to make you comfortable with what you’ll be doing. So everyday from now on, I’ll bring you to this mirror and have you watch yourself do these exercises. Today, our exercise is in getting you familiar with our terminology. For each word you repeat back to me, that’s another ‘action’ I do to you. I point to a word, you say it with no hesitation, I give you something, and we move onto the next. Can you do that for me?”

“I...suppose so.”

“Good! So let’s start with this.” Salem points to the first word written on Summer’s cheek. “Say it.”

“Uh...Kiss?” Salem promptly moves in to peck Summer’s cheek, right on the word.

“Good job! Now, next.” Salem’s finger moves to the other cheek. 

“T-Tongue?”

Salem then tilts Summer’s head back to press her tongue into Summer’s mouth, exploring it like before. Summer blushes, beginning to realize what this “exercise” entails. As Salem pulls away, she points to the next word written above Summer’s collarbone. “This one?”

“Uh, cup?” Summer is confused by this one, up until Salem’s hands reach down to gently cup the undersides of Summer’s breasts, making her gasp in a hushed tone. Salem’s index fingers flick upwards, brushing over Summer’s nipples to make her squirm in place. The now extended fingers point to another word written on Summer’s chest. “F...Fondle…?” Salem’s hands remain still, but Salem herself leans in closer to whisper in the Huntress’ ear.

“Louder, darling…”

“F-Fondle…”

“Come now, say it like you want it.”

“Fondle!”

Summer can practically hear Salem’s grin getting wider as she feels her breasts being lifted and pressed into by her hands. Salem works with patience, repeating the same rolling motion on her breasts. Summer moans softly with each move the witch’s hands make, her breasts being pushed together, squeezed, and pressed into. As her eyes shut, Salem whispers to her, “Keep your eyes open, dear...Enjoy the sight.” Feeling her blush grow, Summer looks at her reflection; Salem peering over her shoulder with her glowing red eyes, like a spectre of pure lust gladly fondling her marked body, while she stands there with beet red cheeks and timid expression. She bites her lip and rubs her thighs together, feeling her core warm the more she stares at the mirror. “See? Isn’t this a lovely sight?” Summer can only whimper in response, trying to keep her moans suppressed. “I can feel your heartbeat right now...you’re enjoying this, as I expected. I know it’s not the game we established, but I want to hear you say that you enjoy this.”

“...I-I...I’m-”

“You’re what, dear?”

“I’m...I’m liking this…”

“You haven’t convinced me.”

“I-I like it, okay?!”

“Now now, there’s no need to be angry...I don’t judge you for liking it.”

“Of course you don’t…” Salem’s hands stop, moving down to gently wrap around the Huntress’ waist.

“It’s Tai, isn’t it?”

Summer heaves out a sigh. “Not just her...I told you, I’m a mother, Salem. What if my children saw me like this? Or worse, Ozpin?” She can feel Salem tense behind her at the mention of Ozpin, then quickly tries to smooth things over. “I-It’s just that I’m worried about…leaving a bad impression, t-that’s all. Sure, I can keep this secret, but what if it comes out? What if they’re tired of me keeping secrets? I’ve already kept so much from them, t-they don’t deserve to-” Her stressed ramblings are interrupted by a sudden pinch to her nipples, making her squeal out of shock. “Ow! W-What was that for?!”

Salem’s smile is replaced with a stern, yet soft expression. “Summer, listen to me and listen well, because this is the last time I will say it. Just because you are a mother does not mean you are not a person. You have given your children a bright future thanks to your efforts. You do not need to waste yourself away for them. It is not a crime to be an individual; as your children grow, they will see you not only as a mother, but as a person. You worry too much for them. Right now, at this moment, let’s worry about yourself. Now tell me, what do you desire?” Summer is at a loss for words; getting a wake-up call on parenting from a centuries-old woman isn’t what she expected to hear. Despite the circumstances, she looks to herself in the mirror once more. She can see the age weighing her once bright cheeks down, her silver eyes dulled to a slight grey. Even if she keeps herself in shape, she can find small blemishes in her once flawless skin. So many years spent on trying to fix a broken family reflected back to her in the mirror, looking more like a stranger than an innocent young woman. Her prime is almost all gone, and she only realizes this now. For a while, the room is silent as the huntress ponders what she truly desires. With newfound clarity, she speaks to Salem’s reflection.

“I came here not just because I want to help save the world. I...I want to feel young again. Feel beautiful again. When I was young, I was too scared to take risks. I want to change that. I want to explore myself.”

Salem nods slowly. “I see...So, where do you want to start?” To the witch’s surprise, Summer begins to bend herself over the table and press her backside against her shaft. She grips the edge of the table, looking to Salem’s reflection with a deep red face.

“You said you want me to be comfortable with sex. Make me comfortable with it.”

For once, it’s Salem who begins to sound flustered at this sudden heel turn. “W-What do you mean?”

“Submissives have to give their dominants power, right? Well...I’m giving you that power.” She grinds her ass against Salem’s hardening rod. “Take me. I want to know what it’s like to really belong to someone. Make me a slut.”

Salem can feel Summer’s conviction not only in her words, but in her soul as well. Her lips curl up once more as she looks to Summer’s reflection. “Are you sure about that?”

“I am.”

“As you wish…” Just like the night before, it’s a matter of seconds before Salem’s entire length is thrust into Summer’s quivering lips, making her mouth hang open as a shuddering gasp enters the air. Salem moans in splendor at the tightened passage, basking in the feeling for a moment before working her hips to hammer away at the mewling Huntress below her. The table below them creaks as Salem’s thrusts make it rock slightly on its legs. She watches Summer’s ass ripple with each slam her pelvis makes, the sight alone triggering her predatory instincts into bringing her hand down hard against it. Summer yelps in shock from the spank, finding a shocking amount of pleasure from the dulling sting. Salem bites her lip and reaches to grab the back of Summer’s neck, roughly pulling her up to press her against her chest. She looks to Summer in the mirror, tilting her chin with her other hand to make her stare as well. The hand on her neck goes around to Summer’s front, gripping one of her breasts.

“This is what you wanted, right?!”

“Y-Yes!”

“What do you see in that mirror?”

“W-What I-Ahn~!-See?”

Salem moves her hand from her breast to spank her ass again. “Don’t make me repeat myself, dear!”

“I-I see...I see a slut?”

“Yes, good! And is that a bad thing?!”

“N-No?!”

“Exactly!” Salem then takes both of her arms under Summer’s own, pulling her back into a full Nelson. She crouches a bit in order to replace her speedy thrusts with harder, longer ones, nearly penetrating into her womb each time. As Summer wraps her legs around Salem’s waist in desperate need for more of this raw ecstasy, she sees herself in the mirror again. Her throat is feeling raw from how much she’s moaning, her eyes are watering, her cheeks are red, her breasts are bouncing, her tongue is hanging, her whole body is burning and gleaming with sweat.

Her new master is taking the reins behind her. She looks like a slut, and she loves it. 

Salem can feel her cock throbbing inside of Summer, but she bites back the urge for a while longer. “Tell me what you want, slut!”

“I-I want to feel good!”

“Do you want your Mistress’ cum?!”

“Y-Yes!!”

“Say it!”

“I want Mistress’ cum!”

**“Louder!”**

**“I want Mistress’ cum~!!!”** It seems from the screaming alone, Summer can feel her cunt tighten and squirt around Salem’s cock. Salem smiles and gladly slams in again to flood Summer’s womb with her seed once again. As the two ride out their orgasm, Salem stumbles back into a nearby chair with a sigh. Summer goes slack against her, panting heavily as she calms herself down. Salem brushes her loose hairs from her face, looking to the dazed Summer with a smile. Gently, she rouses Summer back to Remnant with a few light smacks to her cheek. With Salem’s help, the Huntress is put on the floor to crawl off Salem’s cock, now coated in both of their juices. 

“Why don’t we begin another training exercise, dear?” Salem coos to the cumdrunk Summer. She then sits herself up and signals Summer to turn around with a tap to her leg. As Summer turns, she is faced with that very same cock that was just pounding her. “If you want to get pounded like that again, you have to lick me clean. Do you think you can do that?” Expecting a verbal answer, Salem is caught off guard by Summer giving her cock’s head a small lick. She chuckles and leans down to pet Summer’s sweaty mop of hair. “Just like that...take your time. We have plenty to do together, my little slut.”


	13. Juniper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's your next chapter, everyone! It's a bit shorter than the last one, so my apologies; still getting back into the swing of writing after such a long break. I did pack in some plot here, though, so I hope you enjoy!

As Summer is accepting her desire to be a slut, Cinder assembles her trainees in the lobby. She eyes them all, noting their differing levels of excitement; Nora is easily the most anxious to begin, bouncing on her feet while her freed breasts bounce softly with her movements. Pyrrha, being much more experienced with the program at this point, is more curious than eager as to what the next step in her training is. Jeanne is more timid, nervously scratching the back of her head as she keeps her gaze towards Pyrrha insead of Cinder. Rin...is very difficult for Cinder to read. She just looks bored. Either way, it doesn’t stop Cinder from smiling. “Alright, girls,” she announces to the group, “today is going to be a little more lax in terms of your training. You see, the club next door has asked for some new dancers to help bolster its popularity, and I’ve nominated you all.” She notices Jeanne gulp while stepping a bit closer to Pyrrha. “I know some of you are nervous and all of you have an obligation to Beacon, but you don’t have to worry. I’ve made sure that there is a strict rule against filming in the club, and you will all have disguises to keep your identities secret. We’ll be heading over to the club to work on becoming dancers for our opening night two weeks from now. I do not expect you to become amazing dancers overnight, nor do I expect that of myself, so temper your expectations and try to have fun. Now then...shall we?”

Nora is the first to try and leave, but Rin grabs her arm. “Whaaaaat?!”, she groans. Rin motions to the cloak around her shoulders. “Oh, right.” The band of girls all draw their cloaks around themselves, hiding their nude bodies decorated with latex stockings and gloves. Cinder made sure to dress them like that to make it easier for them to handle the pole. They all step outside to the bright, sunny day and head for the Suave Cigar. Inside, they can see Romania and Neo watching Emerald practice her own routine. Cinder can’t help but smile at the thief up there, sliding slowly down the pole as it presses between her supple breasts, shining in the light like an exotic jewel. Romania looks to the group of cloaked ladies and raises a small shot glass to them.

“Cinder! I see you brought me some more dancers!”

“Indeed I did. I hope they’re to your liking.” She motions for the girls to step forward and disrobe, showing themselves to the ginger-haired pimp. 

“Hm...Not bad, Cindy. Though, the cocks might be difficult to work with. May just have em be the wait staff. In any case, you’ve outdone yourself! At least 3 dancers before the end of the month! We’ll have the girls start practicing once “Ali” finishes working on her routine. Now then, have a walk with me on the town. Uh, once you get dressed, that is.”

“As you wish.” The two of them head backstage, leaving the girls alone with the mute woman. Pyrrha steps forward, assuming leadership for the time being. 

“Alright, everyone!” Pyrrha exclaims with a smile. “Let’s go ahead and talk about the basics while we wait for Emerald to finish up! I’ll take any questions you have!” Nora’s hand immediately shoots up in the air, trying to get Pyrrha’s attention. “Ah...yes, Nora?”

“So is this like doing those crazy stunts at the circus?!”

“..No, not quite. See, the whole point is that you use the pole to put yourself into sexy positions. It does take a lot of dexterity and body strength, but since we’re all training to be Huntresses, we should be fine.” Jeanne nearly immediately looks away, knowing she might not seem...eligible for that. Pyrrha is quick to change the subject. “So, just follow what I do and we’ll see how you all stack up! Okay?” As they collectively nod, Emerald steps off the stage, stretching out her arms. “Good! Let’s get started!”

Neo goes up to the deejay’s table and hooks up her Scroll to the array, putting on some of her own beats for the newcomers to dance to. Pyrrha is the first to step up on stage, gripping the pole and wrapping one leg around it. She starts with a slow spin around the pole, keeping herself at a constant speed before stopping with a low squat towards the non-existent crowd. With that, she motions for Jeanne to give it a try. Jeanne grips the pole tightly, taking a deep breath. She hesitantly wraps her leg around the pole, then tries to spin. She can’t get the hang of moving while her leg is bent, so all she can do is tiptoe around the pole while looking incredibly embarrassed. Pyrrha gives her a pat on the back which does make her smile a little. Next up is Nora, the most ready of them all. She hops up on stage and copies Pyrrha’s motion from before, getting a better spin than Jeanne did. Perhaps a little too good of a spin, for Nora starts to go faster and faster on the pole with little control. Jeanne and Pyrrha both look nervous at the spinning Nora, but Rin just casually walks up and grips Nora’s other arm, stopping her on a dime. Nora looks a little ashamed, but cuddles up to Rin with a big smile before stepping off. Rin is next, and she is quick to copy Pyrrha’s moves exactly. She pulls off the spin, but then lifts both of her legs off the ground to spin around on the pole, going higher and higher up before sliding down with a squatting flourish. Everyone, including Neo, stare in shock at Rin. 

“H...How...How did you…?”

“Rin’s basically the best at everything.”

“Noted…Anyway, let’s continue.”

For their next practice, Pyrrha demonstrates how to hold onto the pole with thighs alone. She climbs up further to show off how to hang from her thighs as well. Jeanne is especially interested in this demonstration. The first one up to try next is Nora, who pulls it off well. Pyrrha notices a weird look in her eye, almost as if she’s enjoying the height a little too much… “Hm...Okay then. Jeanne, why don’t you go next?”

“I...don’t think I should.”

“Why not?” Jeanne motions to the growing wood between her thighs. “Ohh...Do you want me to take care of that?”

“Eh?!”

“I’m sure Cinder won’t mind if we take a break during practice!” The warrior steps closer, reaching to caress Jeanne’s cheek. “And besides, we’ve got plenty of time to get you all ready. Which means…” Her gloved hand reaches down to softly grip Jeanne’s hardening cock, making her shudder. Pyrrha smiles and brings her in for a kiss, slowly stroking her cock as they embrace. Nora and Rin watch from the pole, smiling to each other as they share an idea between them. They approach the couple, Nora going behind Pyrrha and Rin going behind Jeanne. Rin presses her own hardening member between Jeanne’s lower cheeks, making the timid blonde jump slightly in surprise. Nora reaches up to grip Pyrrha’s chest while giggling in her ear. “W-Well now, this is sudden…”

“Aw c’mon, Pyrrha...Dontcha want to get to know us better? We could use a break, too...”

Pyrrha smirks, then turns to pull Nora into a kiss instead, leaving Jeanne to Rin’s mercy. Jeanne feels a shiver looking into Rin’s eyes, in awe at how much mystery they hold. It makes her weak in the knees. Rin walks Jeanne to the pole, silently motioning her to hold it. As Jeanne takes it in her grip, Rin gets behind her and grabs her hips, walking her backwards to slide her further down to make her backside more prominent. Jeanne’s cheeks are burning red as Rin squats down to her asshole, slowly dragging her tongue across it. Her cock throbs as she moans from the contact, feeling it moisten from the sprawling of Rin’s tongue. Once it’s wet enough, Rin tests her willingness by trying to press her thumb inside of Jeanne’s asshole, making her grip tighten against the pole. “N-N-Not there! Not there!” Jeanne squeals, causing Rin to quickly remove her thumb. Instead, Rin makes up for it by going back to licking her asshole in conjunction with jerking her off. Jeanne is more than happy to take this instead of anal insertion, moaning cutely while watching her warped reflection in the pole. 

Pyrrha giggles at the sight of Jeanne getting pleasured from behind while Nora sits against her lap. “Look at them getting along. Isn’t it sweet, Nora?”

Nora takes a break from sucking on Pyrrha’s bountiful tits to glance at them herself. “Oh yeah, it’s nice! We got some nice picks, huh?”

“Indeed we do, Nora. Indeed we do.”

\---------------------------

Meanwhile, in the back of a lush restaurant, Romania and Cinder sit at a booth with wine glasses in their hands. “I’m surprised you could get a reservation in a place like this.”, Cinder comments as she glances around the interior. 

Romania chuckles, taking a sip of her own wine with a smirk. “I’ve got connections, Cindy. It pays to be in the kinds of businesses I’m in.”

“And what kind of businesses would those be?”

“The kind that makes your little club look like the kiddie pool, sweetheart. Also not something I should really talk about among the populace, you know?”

“Hm? Why is that, Torchwick?”

“C’mon, you can’t be that clueless.”

“And what if I am?”

“...What are you getting at? You know something I don’t, Cindy?”

“Perhaps...do you know Eve Taurus?”

“You mean that White Fang extremist on the news lately? I know of them.”

“Recently, they’ve managed to steal an entire train worth of Dust in Forever Fall Forest. Though, it’s a little strange how they did so.”

“What’s so strange about it?”

“They managed to get past a heavily armed train car from Atlas. They must’ve had some kind of special equipment, or at least a contact.”

“Is that right? What’s got you playing detective all of a sudden?”

“I’m not playing detective at all. Just making an observation.”

“Uh huh...if I didn’t know any better, it sounds like you’re sticking your nose into things you shouldn’t be.”

“What makes you say that, Romania?”

“I’ll tell you this right now, Cinder; stay away from the White Fang. In fact, stay away from any of any shady shit here in Vale. You don’t know the kind of forces at work out here in the sticks.”

“I think I can handle myself just fine.”

“Oh really?”

“Indeed. I struck a deal with you, didn’t I? Which reminds me...why not join my ‘little club?’”

“The pimp lifestyle doesn’t get me too far.”

“Says the one who owns a strip club. Don’t lie to me.”

“Okay, fine. I ain’t on board with that Salem chick. I dance to the beat of my own drum. Our little arrangement is purely for my own benefit, so I don’t need to be a part of all that.”

“Come now, Romania...Think of it like a joint business venture. You keep the club and get the girls for yourselves whenever you wish, plus a free room. What is there not to love?”

“The part where I have to be taking orders from you.”

“Don’t let your pride get in the way of something great, Romania. You can do so much more for the world then...smuggling weapons to Adam’s splinter-” The end of Romania’s cane is in her face within a second. This only makes Cinder smile. “Oh my...whatever happened to minding the populace?” Some of the restaurant goers stare at the two, making Romania huff out an angered breath and sit back down. “That’s a good girl. Now, why don’t I make an...adjustment to our deal? You join my branch and act as my financial expert, and in turn, I’ll make sure you never have to use a life of crime to live in luxury. Do we have a deal?”

“...Do I even have a choice?”

“You do, but some of your options do not allow you to leave even.”

“...Fine. On one condition; The suit stays on.”

“As you wish…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As the two make their way back into the club, the see their four dancers in the middle of a foursome. Neo looks down from the deejay table and shrugs.


	14. Dragons

The sun begins to set over the continent of Vale. While the girls of Cinder’s branch start to finish up their practices, Taiyang is putting the finishing touches on a meatloaf she’s been preparing for dinner. With mashed potatoes and corn still steaming on the stove, she’s ready to call the girls back in from their training session. As she walks to the door, the sound of a portal opening behind her takes her attention away. Raven walks through, dusting herself off as it closes. Tai sighs and leans against the front door. “I’m surprised you could make it before dinner this time,” she jokes to the bandit queen. Raven rolls her eyes. “What did the tribe want this time?”

“Nothing important to warrant that long of a visit, the fools...”

“So why do you keep going back there?”

“Tai, what do you think bandits do?”

“...is that a serious question?”

“I would hope not. If it weren’t for me, they’d be out pillaging right now. I go there to keep them all in check, and keep you all from worrying.”

“Really? Is that the only reason you keep them on a leash for us?”

“D-Don’t think too much into it.”

Tai smirks, knowing she got a kink in Raven’s armor. “Fine, fine, I’ll back off. You wanna go tell the girls that dinner’s ready?” Raven scoffs, putting her helmet down on a nearby table. 

“No. In fact, I want to eat now.” Tai is the one to roll her eyes next, turning around with a shrug. Before she can grip the doorknob, Raven suddenly grabs her by the back of her collar and drags her to the couch. She sits the retired Huntress down on it, keeping a weight on her shoulders. “You misunderstand.” The bandit then squats down between Tai’s legs, gripping the hem of her denim shorts. “I want to eat.”

Tai can feel her cheeks burning from the sudden abrasiveness of the offer, looking down at Raven. “R-Right here? Right now?! R-Raven, what has gotten into you?!” Raven just looks back up with a bored expression.

“Taiyang, your so-called wife is now out working for a sex cult to see if we can join, and here you are acting like a prude. How about you shut up and let me at least try to make up for lost time?” Tai has little time to sputter out a response before Raven’s fingers are already at work undoing her belt and fly. “Besides, those idiots at the camp always frustrate me. I haven’t blown off steam like this in a long time.” With one last tug of her boxers, Taiyang’s cock is exposed at half mast, leaving the dragon flustered in her seat. Raven chuckles warmly, pressing her palm against its underside to feel the quickening pulse. She watches it grow with amusement, lightly tracing her middle finger around the head. “I can tell you’ve missed this, too…” She decides to toy with the dragon, letting it’s full length land on the side of her face with a satisfying plap. Her lips press in closer to kiss the underside as her hand reaches back to pull up the robe concealing her backside bound in tight, black shorts. Tai stiffens in her seat, panting out small moans as Raven worships her member with licks, kisses, deep inhales, and a sampling of her precum. 

“Raven…”, she moans out, just as the front door begins to click open. The color in her face nearly fades, knowing her daughters are about to enter in on this. While the couch is facing away from the door, she still fears what they might think if they see this, Ruby especially. Before Tai can try and salvage the situation, Raven suddenly envelops her cock wholly in her mouth. The warmth and moist hole wrapping around her makes her cry out in a moaning gasp, making the two girls at the front door very confused.

“Uh...Dad, are you alright?” Tai quickly tries to recover from the spike in pleasure.

“J-Just yawning, kids! D-Dinner’s ready!”

“Oh, sweet! Meatloaf!” As Ruby and Yang start to dash for the kitchen, Tai can feel her blood run cold. She doesn’t want her children to see this...this filth! However, she has underestimated the hunger of the two girls after training, and they just run right past the sight and into the kitchen, completely out of view. Tai breathes out a deep sigh of relief; their innocence is safe. 

With that little comedic routine out of the way, Raven continues her work by sealing her lips around the base of Taiyang’s member to give it a long, hard suck. The sudden sensation is enough to nearly make Tai cry out, but she covers her mouth just in the nick of time. She looks down at Raven with an angered, yet aroused expression, silently loving this treatment. Raven works expertly to massage the throbbing erection with her tongue and lips, sliding up and down its base while rubbing herself through her shorts. Taiyang’s other hand reaches down to grab Raven’s head and hold her down to the base of it. Finally, Raven thought, it’s just like before. Relenting control to her once dear lover, Raven is throat-fucked by the blushing dragon. While her thrusts are more sloppy and hurried because of the embarrassing moment that transpired, they still have the rough strength Raven’s body remembers from all those years ago. Her rubbing gets quicker as her eyes roll back in splendor. Taiyang’s grip tightens along with her shut eyes. Muffled gasps and quiet squelching noises erupt from them both as they share a newfound feeling of intimacy. Briefly, the two meet gazes once more, a silent signal of their approaching orgasms. With hurried, shallow thrusts, Taiyang cums down Raven’s throat in large, sticky globs of heat. Raven keeps her lips tight around the throbbing member to keep as much of Tai’s seen in her mouth as she can. 

With their time spent, Tai leans back against the couch, panting softly as she basks in the brief afterglow. Raven gulps down Taiyang’s sperm with ease, noting how much easier it was after having to drink all those low-quality ales during her raids. However, she observes that Tai’s spit-covered cock is still standing tall. The two don’t have to say much more before they both stand and hurry themselves up the stairs.

“Wow, wonder what she went up in a hurry for,” Ruby comments upon hearing the clattering of steps going up the stairs. “What do you think that was for, Yang? ...Yang?” The blonde in question is staring at the toaster across the way from the kitchen, which moments before, was showing everything her true parents were doing. Everything. “Yang…?”

“...I’m gonna take a shower.”

“But you haven’t even touched your meat-”

“You have it, I’m not hungry anymore.” She then swiftly moves out of her seat to head upstairs, leaving Ruby with confusion and an extra slice of meatloaf.

Yang nearly stumbles her way into the bathroom, hastily peeling off her clothes as she slams the door behind her. She jerks the knob to the right, knowing it would take a second before the water got hot, but she doesn’t care. As soon as the shower head bursts to life, she climbs in and snatches the bar of soap from the edge of the tub. Grabbing her color-coded washcloth, she vigorously lathers the soap on it before scrubbing her face. She almost tries to scrub her eyes out, but her common sense kicks in enough to make her close them; no amount of soap can wash away her parents in the middle of a blowjob. 

“EweweweweweweweweEW! WHY did I have to see that?! Is that why Mom made that weird noise?! Ugh! And Raven was even touching herself, too, so gross! Okay, calm down Yang. Just don’t think about it. Don’t think about it. …………... **Augh, it’s burned in my brain! Damn you, Raven!** I can’t believe I was unlucky enough to see that! Why would they do that in the middle of the living room?! Did they know I could see it?! Is Raven trying to spite me or something?! She should have never come back here! Never ever! I can’t believe I wasted all that time looking for some selfish, gross, annoying, sarcastic, sexy-wha? Oh Gods, **EW! I did NOT just say that!** Raven isn’t sexy, she’s a bitch! I’m the sexy one! Ugh, this is the worst day of my life…”

Yang slides down the side of the shower wall, sitting against it as the shower head rains down on her. At least the water’s hot now. Her mind swims with angry thoughts against Raven; how she left her, how she came back, how she keeps using her hair stuff without asking her first, how she ate the last slice of cake, how she keeps hogging the couch to herself, legs kicked up, stockings squishing those stupid thighs, her robe always being nearly too short and loose, making her chest nearly fall out of it, her dumb shorts being too tight whenever she bends down to get something…

_“Ahn~...”_

Yang closes her eyes as her train of thought spirals to a darker place. The more she thinks about Raven, the more she can recognize their similarities. The more she can start to see herself in that position, the tighter the grasp on her breast gets. These thoughts spur her into realizing what the parents clambered up the stairs for, leading her to turn off the shower on a whim. Just as she thought; she can hear the bed creaking a few rooms down. She feels a burning in her loins thinking about what she hears, imagining Raven n there. She’s probably on her back, no, on her hands and knees while Tai is taking her from behind. She’s probably moaning like crazy right now, clutching the sheets like her life depends on it. Someone bigger, someone stronger, someone desperate like Tai grabbing her hips, maybe gripping her breasts, maybe spanking her or even...pulling her hair...She would kill someone normally for that, but now...now all she can think about is how it must feel. In and out, in and out, over and over and over again. Her head pushed down to the pillows, her breasts swinging from the thrusts, her ass being clapped and slapped, her lover being relentless, her nipples hard, her clit stiff, her body a red, sweaty mess covered with hand prints, her pussy being pounded over and over until-

 **“Oh FUCK!”** Yang cries out as her body shakes from the incoming orgasm. Her back arches as her pussy gushes from the immense pleasure her fingers were giving her during her fantasy. She bites her lip as she looks down at her hand, feeling the slick wetness against her skin. She was no stranger to masturbating, but this is something new. She’s never cum this hard before, not even from one of her favorite videos, and it’s all because of her moms fucking in the other room. Yang feels the shame of her act set in just as her afterglow passes, making her slump in the tub. She turns the shower on again to clean herself proper this time, knowing that she needs to feel as clean as possible after that.

\---------------------------------------------------

The next day, Ruby finds everything is nearly upside down. During breakfast, Tai and Raven are being a lot more...chatty than normal. In fact, they almost acted like Tai and Summer. Before yesterday, they barely spoke to each other about nice stuff and centered around important things like jobs and hunting and “The Tribe.” Ruby wishes it had a cooler name. What’s even weirder is how Yang is acting; she didn’t say a word last night after that shower, and now she can’t even look at Raven and Tai. Is she still mad at them? Did something happen last night? She doesn’t know, but she does know that all this weirdness started when Summer went on that “mission” a few weeks ago. Something is up here, and it’s starting to make her family act more and more strange. Ruby can’t wait until the Beacon presentation. She needs to figure out what’s going on, and fast. Cinder is her only hope, but how can she get to the mainland fast enough. As she looks to Raven setting her sword down on the floor, she gets an idea. With a silent, evil chuckle, Ruby triumphantly stuffs her mouth with another spoonful of Pumpkin Pete’s...


	15. Innocence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! This chapter isn't very lewd and I apologize for that, but I can assure you I'll keep them coming. If you need to get some "happy times" in, might I recommend my other fics? I recently added some new one shots about Shantae and Kill la Kill (with another one shot coming very soon, so look out for that~). Either way, enjoy the latest chapter of "Mark of Salem!"

As breakfast comes to an end, Ruby sets her plan into action. First things first, she needs to get the go ahead on a special trip. She approaches Tai while she’s cleaning up the kitchen. “Heeeeeey Mo-I mean, Aunty Tai,” she cheerfully chirps to her.

“You can call me whatever you want, hun.”

“I know. I wanted to ask if I could hang out with Aun-I mean Momma Crowe today.”

“Really? You want to spend time with her?”

“Yeah! Yang gets to spend time with her actual parents, so why can’t I?”

“Well, I guess I don’t mind. You set something up with her and let me know.”

“You got it! Thanks Aunty!” Step one is complete. Now for step two. Pulling out her scroll, she gets a call set up with her biological mother. “Hey!”

“Hey kiddo. How ya holding up?”

“I’m fine! Do you wanna hang out in Vale today?”

“Vale, hm? No problem. Just run it by your par...I guess they’re not your parents, huh?”

“I know, it’s kinda weird to remember. But they said it’s okay! I’ll see you there, alright?”

“You got it, kiddo. See you then.” Step two, in the bag. From the sounds of her aunts talking behind her, step three is close to completion as well. 

“Vale? We’ll have to get a boat.”

“We don’t need a boat, Tai. I can just portal her there.”

“Oh right. Well, looks like we’re all set.” Yes! Step three complete! Ruby speeds up the stairs in a cloud of rose petals to get herself changed for a day out. Just a few minutes later, she’s making her way through one of Raven’s creepy portals to meet with her actual mom. On the other side is Crowe, lounging in a single bed hotel room. Now, Ruby can set her true plan into motion. 

“So, kiddo, any plans for today?”

“Kinda...I want to ask you for a favor.”

“A favor? Look kid, if you wanted money, you could’ve come up with a better excu-”

“No no no! I need your help! You see, ever since this whole Salem thing, the family has been acting...weird. I thought Raven would be grouchy all the time, but now she’s being really nice to D-I mean, Aunt Tai! And now Yang is looking at them like she’s sad about something! I think it started with that...creaking noise…” Crowe looks confused for a moment, but then cracks a smile. That smile leads to her busting a gut in front of a very stern Ruby. “Why are you laughing?! This is serious!”

The red huntress-to-be crosses her arms in a huff as Crowe continues to laugh, nearly falling out of her chair as a result. She forces herself to slow her breathing in order to address her angered daughter; “Okay, okay! Ruby, you-...You got the wrong idea. Nothing’s wrong with them, not at all.”

“Seriously? How do you know?”

“You said something about a creaking noise, right? Where did it come from?”

“Their bedroom.”

“Exactly.”

“...Huh?”

“...Ruby. You’re 18 and you can’t put that together?”

“What do you me-...Oh. Oh! EW!”

“Yup.”

“You mean THAT’S why they’re all happy?! That’s gross!”

“It’s part of life, kiddo.”

“Ugh...Well anyway, that doesn’t answer my next question; What’s Salem doing exactly? You never told us.”

“Ah, that? I don’t know if you want to know that after finding out your aunts bonin-”

“Stooooooop!”

“See? You’re not in the right headspace for it. You know what, here.” Reaching into her vest pocket, Crowe pulls out a small fold of lien and hands it to Ruby. “Go out, get somethin, clear your head, and come talk to me.”

“Hey, I thought you said I can’t get money!”

“Oh don’t worry; you’re paying me back for it. Now go on.” Ruby then rolls her eyes and steps out of the hotel room, leaving her head swimming with questions. It’s bad enough she now has this vague image of her aunts-one being her parent for most of her life-”doing the do” in her head, but now she has to deal with the mystery of Salem’s method of saving the world. And all with enough lien just to get her a cheeseburger. This is going to be a long day. 

Even with the confusion, Ruby still loves the bustling city of Vale. She has many good memories of the city, like the time she got to ride on a horse in the Vale Zoo or when she had her sixteenth birthday party in a haunted house. She’s thought about moving to the city a few times before in her life, if only so she can stay closer to her home while doing her dream job of hunting and exploring like her mother does. Thinking of her future, Ruby’s walk down the street keeps her silent and occupied, until she hears a sudden crash in an alleyway ahead. Curious, she moves to the alleyway and spots something that shouldn’t be there; a woman crouching near a knocked-over trash can. 

Her back is to the silver-eyed girl, showing off the long, dark mass of hair that fans out behind her. As she stands, Ruby spots a single black bow on top of her head, a cute accessory contrasting with the weapon mounted on her back; it looks to be a bladed sheathe holding a blade with a bulky hilt. The girl looks to the trash can she knocked over, giving Ruby a glimpse of her stern, golden eyes. Quickly, those eyes fix themselves onto Ruby, and the girl swiftly pulls out the blade and points it at her, the black sword folding down to make the bulky hit’s purpose known; it’s also a gun. 

“You didn’t see me,” the girl speaks in a calm, yet commanding tone. Ruby quickly puts her hands up in panic.

“Whoa whoa whoa! T-Take it easy, lady!” Ruby’s aura flares up around her, a red shield that dissipates soon afterwards. This makes the stoic girl tilt her head slightly, but her gun stays trained on her. Ruby can feel herself starting to sweat from the tense situation she stumbled into.

“Hands down. Go down the sidewalk nice and-” The sound of a low grumble cuts through the tension like a hacksaw through rotting wood. Ruby’s eyes slowly drift down to the exposed midriff, knowing the source of the noise instantly. She looks back up to see the girl is getting red in the face from that realization, but her expression stays the same.

“I...Uh...Are you hungry?”

“...No.”

“H-Hey, I don’t mind getting you lunch. In fact…” Ruby takes a longer observation of the girl; her clothes seem a bit dirty with small rips in the stockings, there’s a small scratch on her face and bags under her eyes, and the gun pointed at her face must’ve gone a week without polishing. The poor thing! “You kinda look like you need a lot of help.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?!”

“Ah! N-Nothing bad! I-I just want to help! There’s a burger place nearby, s-so…” The girl’s expression seems to soften a bit, as if she’s coming to a silent realization. Then, to Ruby’s surprise, the girl sheathes her weapon.

“Let’s go.”

Ruby, while relieved she isn’t at gunpoint anymore, is still feeling the pressure of the previous situation. There’s something about how she keeps staring at her as they walk, like a hole is being burned into her back with the girl’s eyes. “So...what’s uh, what’s your name?” Silence. “...Y-Yeah, fair enough. I’m grouchy when I’m hungry, too…” Later than Ruby wishes it took in her head, the pair make it to the small fast food place. Ruby all too quickly orders for the silent girl in hopes that she’ll eat whatever is put in front of her if it means breaking this awkward silence. A few more agonizing minutes later, the food finally arrives and the girl digs in. Ruby sighs in relief, knowing she at least managed to help her out somehow. 

After many handfuls of fries and bites of burger, the girl utters a single word; “Blake.”

“Huh?”

“My name. It’s Blake. Thank you for this.” Ruby blinks for a moment before smiling, knowing she managed to salvage the situation after all.

“Oh, no problem! It’s the least I can do!”

“...Sorry about pointing a gun at you.”

“Ah...water under the bridge.”

“Mm. I noticed you have your arua up still. Are you a Huntress?”

“Oh, uh, Huntress in training, actually. Are you one? I mean, you’ve got that sword.”

“...I’ve just been trained by one, that’s all.”

“Oh, me too! Well, I was trained by a lot of Huntresses...At a school. Hey, can I see that sword?”

“Why?”

“I’ve never seen a folding blade like that. It’s kinda interesting.” Blake looks to the girl with a shrug, then pulls the weapon off her back. As Ruby takes a hold of it, she notices the handle has a ribbon tied to it, which goes up to the arm of the stoic girl. “Oh wow! So that’s why the blade folds down; it’s a chain scythe!”

“You..figured that out pretty fast.”

“I’m kind of a weapons nerd. Oh, even the sheathe is a blade! And this ribbon here can fire off the gun if pulled! Not bad! Though, it looks like you sacrificed damage potential with simplicity. There’s not a lot you could do with Dust in this weapon aside from small Dust shots. It’s pretty light, though, so I imagine that’s all you really wanted from it. Less of a Grimm-killer and more of a close-combat weapon, right?” Blake silently nods, being impressed with Ruby’s eye for weaponry. Ruby beams as she hands the weapon back. “Man, if I had brought Crescent Rose with me, this would’ve been even better!”

“Do you have pictures?”

“Duh! But looking at pictures isn’t enough. You can’t get a feel for the weapon that way! It’s like my Aun-Mom always told me-’If people can edit pictures to have bigger tits, they can do the same to weapons.’”

“Heh. Yeah…”

“So! Are you here to enlist at Beacon?”

“Not really...I doubt I can, anyway.”

“Sure ya can! There’s gonna be an exam next week!”

“Wait, what?”

“Yep! It’s the same day as the tour for the students who’ve already taken it! My big sis and I are gonna be there! I’ll join her for the tour, and then I’m gonna take the exam for myself! You should come by, too!”

“Huh…Well, I guess I could try it...”

“Awesome! Man, am I glad I met you, Blake! Oh, that reminds me; my name’s Ruby!”

“Heh. The pleasure is mine, I suppose.” The two find themselves getting lost in conversation, even after their fast food trays only had crumbs on them. Ruby smiles more seeing Blake visibly loosen up as they go on. Blake finds herself rubbing her cheeks from how much she smiles...and how much she cringes sometimes at Ruby’s childish jokes. Either way, it isn’t until Ruby spots the time on a news broadcast playing in the restaurant that she begins to bring the talk to an end.

“Oh shoot! We’ve been chatting for a bit! Hey, Blake, want me to walk you to where you’re staying?”

“Uh, I’ll be fine on my own. It’s still light out.”

“Ah, I insist! I’ve got some time before I gotta head home!” In truth, Blake has no idea where she’s going to stay for the night. The previous night was a random alley. Ruby’s insistence gives her a strangely warm feeling, even if it’s slightly unsettling. 

“...Alright then, but I’ll lead the way.”

“You got it!” And so, the pair begin moving through the streets with Blake desperately trying to find a building she can pass off as a place she can stay at. Eventually, she spots a run down apartment complex in the distance. That will have to do. She walks over to it and makes her way to the front door. “This is the place?”, Ruby asks.

“Uh, yeah. Thanks again for lunch, Ruby. I’ll see you next week.”

“Oh! You want me to walk you to your ro-”

“No! Uh, I mean you should probably head to where you’re staying before it gets dark.”

“Ah, I’ve got time. Besides, I’ve got to find someone out here. They kinda look like you, actually! Black hair, yellow eyes, but she’s a little taller.”

“Uh huh...so, good luck with tha-” Just as Blake reaches for the door handle, the door itself opens in front of her. Blake’s blood runs cold as her head slowly turns to the figure standing at the doorway; the woman Ruby just describes sporting a red dress and interested smirk. 

“Can I help you?”

Ruby gasps and moves up to the stairway next to Blake. “It’s you, Cinder!”

“Oh! Well if it isn’t little Ruby...What brings you and your friend here?”

“I was looking for you again! I wanna ask you a lot stuff about-”

“I can see that. Why don’t you both come in and have some tea?”

“That...actually sounds nice.”

“Sure!”

As the two enter, Cinder pulls Ruby over to the kitchen while Blake finds a seat at the table.

“Ruby...What did you want to ask me so badly that you left your home?”

“Oh relax, Cinder; it’s not like I ran away! I’m visiting Crowe now!”

“I see…”

“As for what I’m here for...What’s the deal with your whole Salem thin-”

“Shh! Not so loud, dear.”

“Eh?”

“I-...Okay, how about I cut you a deal? I’ll tell you whatever you want to know after your friend there leaves.”

“Doesn’t she live here…? And what exactly is ‘here’ anyway?”

“Ohhh, this complicates things...Maybe you should head back home and ask your folks about this.”

“They won’t tell me the truth! Cinder, they basically lied to me about my own birth for years now! I’ve got to hear it from you!” Cinder brushes her hair back, a sudden feeling of guilt hitting her. Has this mistrust been her fault ever since she exposed it? With a reluctant sigh, she puts her hands on Ruby’s shoulders.

“Are you sure you want to know? Once you learn it, you can’t take it back and you can’t tell anyone that isn’t related to you at all. It’s very important.” Ruby is surprised by the sudden change in tone, but nods with determination. Cinder then moves behind Ruby to pull a loose tile out of the ground, revealing a ladder. “Head down there. Don’t be afraid; it can’t hurt you. Call her name and you’ll be answered.” Ruby, albeit confused, follows the first instruction and heads down the ladder. As it gets darker, she can feel her skin start to chill and cover in goosebumps. Once she touches down at the floor, she turns to find an open room dimly lit with lanterns. In its center is an “Eep!”-enducing creature that floats ominously before her. Of all the times to be unarmed…

Ruby gulps and makes her way to the fleshy orb, remembering Cinder’s instructions. “Uhh...S-Salem…?” She watches the creature curiously as the black orb becomes filled with red clouds. From this mist appears Salem, smiling with a curious glance to the young woman.

“Well now...this is a surprise.”

“Uhhh...a-are you Salem…?”

“Indeed I am, Ruby.”

“Wha-h-how did you know my name?!”

“Your mother told me about you.”

“M-My mom? Where is she?!”

“Relax, my dear, she’s with me in my palace. She’s going through some...basic training.” She glances down for a moment at Summer, still resting her head against her knee with a reddened face. A small bead of saliva breaks her connection from Salem’s stiff cock, bringing more amusement to the Queen. “In any case, I assume you must’ve found your way to Cinder, is that right?”

“Uh, y-yeah…a-and I wanna know just what the heck is going on! Not that I don’t like my family being together for longer, but if you’re gonna save the world, I wanna know how!”

“Fair enough. I suppose you have as much of a right to know as your family does. However, take heed that-”

“Yeah yeah, if I know it, I can’t tell anyone or take it back, I get it. Just tell me what it is already!”

“As you wish...Sex.”

“...What?”

“It’s sex.”

**“...Huh?”**

“Let me explain.”

\---------------------------------

Meanwhile, Cinder approaches Blake with a tea tray prepared. Blake glances behind Cinder as she approaches.

“Where’s Ruby?”

“Ah, she needed to use the restroom, so I pointed her to it. Now then, I don’t believe I ever met you.”

“Blake.”

“Blake, hm? I’m Cinder, as you’ve probably heard. So what brings you here?”

“Ah, well...I kind of need a place to stay, so if you could just pretend I live here until Ruby leaves, then I’ll be right out of your hair.”

“Why don’t you just live here?”

“Because I don’t?”

“Well you can. Right now, in fact. I have plenty of rooms open.”

“...I’m not falling for it.”

“Falling for what?”

“I look young, but I know a thing or two about taking advantage of people. You’re not going to do that with me.”

“I think you’re mistaken, Blake. From what I can tell, you want to pretend to live here so you don’t have to tell Ruby you have nowhere to go at the moment. Am I right?”

“...”

“Exactly. So, let’s just skip the middleman and get you a room. Free for tonight.”

\--------------------------------------

“And that’s the plan.”

“...So...when you said ‘training-’”

“I meant I’m teaching your mother to have sex more often. In fact, she just finished sucking my-”

“OH MY GODS, STOP!”

“You asked.”

“I-I...I don’t know how to feel about this.”

“Well let me ask you this, Ruby. Do you feel any lesser about your mother?” The Huntress-to-be scratches the back of her head, trying to pull together her thoughts enough after all of this. “I...I don’t think so. I mean, it’s weird...like, REALLY weird, but...the fact that Mom can be doing this stuff and...you know, still be Mom, it’s...it’s kinda impressive. Mom sacrifices a lot for us already, so I guess I should’ve expected her to be brave enough to do this. So uh, if she’s there, tell her I said she’s cool for doing this and I bet Crowe and the others think that, too!” Salem smiles and glances down at the recovering Summer; she’s currently trying to keep her daughter from hearing her sniffle from the joyful tears in her eyes. 

“I’ll make sure she knows that.”

“Cool!...So uh, do I have to do that, too?”

“Not at all. It’s your choice.”

“Cool, because that still looks gross…”

“Understandable. It does feel good, though.”

“They say the same thing about drugs.”

“Except drugs haven’t existed as long as sex.”

“Good point...I guess.”

“...It’s okay to be curious, Ruby.”

“I know…”

“You want to watch it~?”

“With my mom?! No!”

“Right, right. Either way, you should probably head home now.”

“I guess...Thanks for telling me all that.”

“Of course, Ruby. Say hi to the family for me.”


End file.
